Vampire Knights
by PonyVamps
Summary: A new evil faces the Cullens. With the help of three new heroes and their horses, can they see through the lies and deceit? First fic, PLEASE review! Flames are ok, but we don't have good fire safety. Keep checking 4 updates, will come when they come!
1. Starts With One

(A/N: this is a preface to our story, enjoy!)

**Vampire Knights**

Preface: Starts With One

Isabella Cullen awoke, free at last from the pain of the torturous vampiric transformation. She was a newborn--wild and bloodthirsty. But she was also different, in a way. Her aversion to blood as a human allowed her one slim chance, in that she could think, could make rational decisions when not confronted by the scent of the living. She could look past the instinct to kill, to tear and drink and feast. But it was a very fine line, and her husband sent her to feed before her tenuous self control was broken.

This was probably not the smartest thing he could have done, to send her out alone. But she was sure of herself, and he could deny her in nothing. And all the trust of their eternal relationship was placed on her instincts. Again, not the best decision, but hindsight is always 20/20.

She darted into the night, weaving around thick foliage in search of the cure for the burning in her throat. But she was young, and her prey was not--that which she so desperately sought evaded her easily. The reckless hunt brought her nearer and nearer to civilization, never a good sign for one so new. But at last her search was placated by a beautiful sight--a barn, not so near to humans that she could smell them. And it was, of course, deserted, save for the animals that resided there.

It was a very pretty scene, this stable on the hill. The moonlight shone across the roof, glinted in the shadows, and cast a silver light over the occupants of each stall. The air was dry, with the omnipresent scent of leather and manure floating on the breeze. The entire building seemed to sigh with the gentle breathing of fifteen horses, deep in slumber—altogether, a very peaceful place. But its serenity was wasted on the vampire, who had eyes for only her quarry.

Isabella Cullen crept up the hill, silent as a wraith. But as she approached, one chocolate brown eye opened as one small pony woke. One can only guess why this pony chose this particular moment to regain consciousness. Perhaps it was the instinctive aversion all animals feel towards vampires, perhaps it was the exceptionally keen hearing of this dark chestnut pony, or perhaps it was merely chance. But whatever the reason may have been, this pony awoke and tensed at the sight of the ghostly pale figure creeping up the hill. And this of course, did not escape the figure's notice.

She went for him first, faster than his eyes could comprehend. Her icy teeth gleamed with silver light, before she buried them deep in his throat. The pony was alarmed, naturally, his eyes flashing white and his head jerking up. But at first he was not physically uncomfortable. His world shrank, going black, and narrowing down to only the gentle tugging sensation at his neck. It was actually very calming, though his instincts screamed of danger.

And this is where everything went wrong. A wise person once compared feeding off animals to living off of your least favorite food for all eternity. Now even though all are repulsive, the degree of awfulness varies between species. Horses--being prey, not predators--are on the more disgusting side of the spectrum, especially to the acute senses of a newborn. So Isabella Cullen broke away, nearly hysterical at the thought of an eternity of _that_. And as she dashed off into the night she heard, quite distinctly, the scream of a dying pony.

She fled from it, racing for the coven's new home. And after she explained to her mate all that had transpired he took her out again, in quest of a more palatable meal. He would help her bear the weight of the path she had chosen.

And nobody spared another thought for the pony dying in the barn on the hill--nobody except the blonde haired angel, who worried briefly about the results of his newest daughter's lapse in control. But he too was soon distracted, and the pony was lost from time as the rain began to fall.


	2. Fire and Ice

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 1: Fire and Ice

Jitterbug's PoV

Pain.

Fire.

The fire is everywhere; it is everything. Fire consumes, driving away everything but the pain.

The scorching, burning, searing pain.

There are voices too, if I can look beyond the fire. I call to them, screaming desperately into the night. Why don't they take away the fire?

A needle pricks my neck. This one small hurt is lost, drowned by the overwhelming intensity of the fire.

Morphine. I don't believe I've ever smelled it before, but my brain names it. It is supposed to be a painkiller, but I feel no relief. There is no cooling of this wretched burning.

I hear a struggle, a scuffing of feet and a thudding of limbs. Calm voices are restraining someone…my someone! It is my girl, the one that feeds and rides and loves me. She will take away the fire.

I feel her hands stroking my neck, hear her ragged breathing and broken sobs. She is begging me to be calm, to be okay. I would be okay, if she would put out the fire. Could she not see it either?

Water. I realize my cheeks are wet, her fallen tears coating my fur. But this does not stop the burning, doesn't even make a difference. She holds my head still as another needle bites my neck.

This one is different. The scent of morphine does not reach me, but another does. It is the stench of death. They are trying to kill me.

I pray for it to succeed, for the drugs to take away the pain and leave me floating. Even obliteration would be preferable to this unbearable heat.

It does not. I am left to burn, to wither and crumble in the heat of the fire. Precisely how long I am trapped escapes me. But I do know that my girl stays with me, her eyes running dry and her voice going hoarse. She murmurs nothings in my ear, the only sound apart from my frantic calls. She sooths me, if only slightly, and I am grateful for her presence.

And then the fire begins to dull. The flames fade from my hooves, from the tips of my ears and tail. They shrink, until only my heart is left in their scorching grip. And then that too, is free.

But something is still wrong. Either I am very cold, or my girl has a fever; the arms around my neck burn my skin, but this one is a pleasant heat. I can hear every breath she takes, every thump of her beating heart. And when she whispers, her voice brimming with shock and relief, the sound is louder than it should be.

"Bug?"

My name, or part of it. It is one of the many names she has for me. My full name, though, is Jitterbug. At least, that's what everyone else calls me.

I stand, much faster than I should have been able to. I open my eyes at last, to see her sprawled on the ground.

She wears her pajamas—pants and an old T-shirt. Her long, red hair is tangled, shavings and dirt clinging to it. She stares at me, her bright green eyes wide with shock. But I can almost see the wheels of her brain turning, attempting to explain the sight before her.

She figures it out, just like I knew she would. Her open mouth snaps shut, twisting into an incredulous smile and her eyes grow, if possible, even larger. They glow with an almost crazy light, a combination of hope and disbelief, as she slowly rises to her feet.

"You're a vampire."

Her words are nonsensical. I am a pony, everyone tells me I am a pony. I know what vampires are, of course. She has told me much about them. They drink blood, have heightened senses, and no heartbeat. But most importantly, they are not real. _Fictional._ The creatures of fairytales, from what she tells me.

She continues, oblivious to my distraction. "Red eyes, no heartbeat, cold, beautiful—it's all there!" She is very excited. But then her face changes, her eyes stare at me, deathly serious and penetrating. "I know you can talk, Bug. I've always known you could, if you wanted to. Will you talk to me?"

I do speak to her, as all animals do, through telepathy. I don't believe she hears the words I send her, but she is able to pick up on feelings and ideas. She is more perceptive than most. But still, I suppose it is worth a try.

_Hello_, I send to her.

She smiles, teeth stretching across her face into a radiant grin. "Hello yourself." Does she hear me?

_What is your favorite color?_ I try for definitive proof. It is a simple question, but it requires a distinctive answer.

"Purple."

She does hear me! And with that said, she wraps her arms around my neck, burning me again with her hug. I snort—she smells funny.

But then another, more powerful scent hits me. This one calls to me, like sweet alfalfa, but stronger. I distantly see awareness light on her face, before horror replaces it. But this is trivial, for I have located the source of the tantalizing scent.

"No Bug, no! Don't! You can't, that's Moonie! Remember Moonie? He's your friend, remember? Don't kill him, it's not nice. Please Bug!"

I know she is speaking, I know the sounds are words. But their meaning is lost as I lunge for the scent.

(A/N: Please review! Constructive criticism is much appreciated as well as praise!)


	3. Moon Cycle

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 2: Moon Cycle

Moonie's PoV

The sun crawled across the pale colored sky as I awoke. Watching it, I transitioned into my normal routine; breakfast. The sound of this sweet word was like a huge horse bucking me out of my daze.

As I strolled over to my hay, I heard a strange sound; a panting breath echoed in the barn. At first, I couldn't identify the culprit; the noise was too low, too scarce. Suddenly, a voice came from my neighbors stall…

"Bug?"

Of course. It was Lily. Her admiration for Jitterbug was undeniable. As the volunteers continued to come and go, Lily remained with several of my favorites…

Esmerelda- She has a great amount of respect for many. Definition: Do-Good-Er. Her laugh is non-mistakable, like a zebra having a seizure. Favorite Horse: Miracle.

This tight group, or clique as some may call it, are the survivors of the barn. They've dealt with the worst possible people and still manage to put on a smile. However one always stuck out; she was interestingly different from the rest.

Jill had a laugh factor that was off the charts, and the energy of a racehorse. She is always attracted to my stall, saying, "Moonie!" or "Moon-man", and her favorite, "Mooners". At first this girl was highly bothersome, like a fly to my face. However, I softened up to Jill; her perkiness was too fun to resist. Like Lily to J.B., Jill was to me.

Today, she was running late, I could tell. Being more intelligible than most horses, I absorbed many fascinating aspects… when my face wasn't buried in the hay.

Something was off, and I couldn't figure it out. I overheard Lily's voice…

It was frantic at first, and then relaxed into excitement. I tried to get a better view of the situation from my stall opening; however there was no one in sight.

"She must be inside Jitter's stall…" I thought.

I turned around and went outside. As I peeked over the rail, J.B.'s eyes locked with mine. Something was _definitely_ wrong.

A red-hazed glare held my attention, and paralyzed my body. My legs wouldn't move; I was too shocked.

My friend had turned into some monster; a dangerous predator.

As Jitterbug's motive became clear, Lily was too aware of the incident that was about to take place.

"No Bug, no! Don't!" she shrieked, "You can't, that's Moonie! Remember Moonie? He's your friend, remember? Don't kill him, it's not nice. Please Bug!"

However, none of her words mattered, and Jitterbug, my best friend, lunged for the kill.

Jitterbug's PoV

I tear through the thin metal bars separating me from my prey easily, driven by the bloodlust. A small part of my brain acknowledges that my girl is right--I am a vampire. But the larger part has forgotten her, and cares only about the scent.

I dive for the smell, feel my teeth sink into hot flesh and the blood fill my mouth. It is so sweet, this new sustenance. I never want it to stop. But as I suck greedily, a picture is painted behind my eyelids. I recognize the horrified face of my girl, and something else. The predator in me tells me it is food--but another memory, from another lifetime, says _friend_.

Suddenly something shifts, the dam breaking and flooding my mind with a thousand different scenes. Hot summer days, standing in the shade of the trees, brisk winter evenings, huddled together for warmth, and hour after hour, resting in companionable silence. And one face is present in all of them, the one the monster called prey.

It is Moonie, my best friend of many years. And while I think this through, the monster--my monster--will kill him.

I break away, horrified at what I'd done. The monster cries for more, clawing at me to escape. But my revulsion towards myself is stronger than it, and I race into the night.

I run, faster than ever before, into the forest as dawn breaks through the trees. I lay down, exhausted, and hope that I'm the breed of vampire that burns in the sunlight. I don't deserve to live.

Jill's PoV

I was asleep, my dreams centering around Moonie, as usual. But something was different tonight, something seemed out of place.

I was having a nightmare, the images swirling through my brain with terrifying clarity. The small part of me that usually reassured me it was just a dream was conspicuously absent, leaving nothing but horror. Moonie was in trouble.

My phone rang shrilly, jerking me from sleep. But the sense of foreboding didn't lessen as I checked the caller ID. It was Lily.

"Edward?" I answered, smiling slightly at our inside joke.

"Jill you have to come to Ride On now." Her voice whipped through the words so fast that my still groggy brain had to work to catch them all. But as soon as the meaning hit, I was instantly alert.

"What's wrong?"

"I'll explain when you get here. Now run! Don't bring your parents."

"I'm on my way."

I snapped my phone shut, dragged on a pair of sneakers, and dashed out into the lifting night. For the thousandth time, I thanked my lucky stars that I lived to close to Ride On.

The sidewalk flew by as I sprinted, my feet pounding out a steady rhythm. Each thumping footfall had a name--_Moonie, Moonie, Moonie._

It was as I raced up the hill that I heard it. A scream pierced the silence, the frantic, heart wrenching cry of a dying animal. I pushed my legs faster, racing to reach the stable before the tears hit.

I stumbled down the barn aisle, my breathing harsh from exertion and sobs. I shoved the stall door aside, falling to my knees next to Moonie's thrashing form.

"Moon, Moon, Moonman. Shh, shh, it's okay, I'm here, calm down, it's okay." I chanted helplessly, the tears soaking his thick, golden-brown mane. This was the same thing that had happened to Jitterbug. They had even tried to put him down, the drugs failing entirely.

"Maybe I should explain." I hadn't noticed Lily come up behind me. I nodded to her jerkily, my muscles refusing to turn away from Moonie.

"He'll be like this for three days, and then he'll be perfect--better than perfect. He'll be stronger and faster than he ever has been. This will be the most painful memory, the most vivid one. The only one that won't fade with time. Sound familiar?"

I stared at her blankly. Truthfully, I had no idea what she had just said. They were just sounds, bouncing in my ears and mixing with the cries of my pony.

She saw the incomprehension in my eyes. "He'll be a vampire, Jill."

I glared at her as menacingly as I could. It wasn't easy--my eyes were red and puffy, my hair tangled, my wrinkled pajamas soaked with tears and sweat--but I tried.

"I'm serious! I'd prove it to you if I could, but Bug ran away after he bit Mooners. He's miles away by now."

I shook my head stubbornly.

She sighed. "Okay, call me when you decide to believe me. Bye Jill." And then she left, padding softly across the dirt and out into the air.

I stayed with Moonie, exactly how long, I wasn't sure. The seemingly endless cycles of light and dark passed in a blur as I stroked his quivering head. It seemed to help some, seemed to quiet the screams fractionally.

Actually they were much quieter now, and my sleepless nights came crashing down. I vaguely noticed that Moonie was snapping his teeth, his neck stretching blindly into the night air.

And then one of his random snatches caught my arm. He pulled away, still grinding his teeth, as the fire coarsed up my shoulder.


	4. River

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 3: River

Jill's PoV

The fire rippled up my arm. My sobs poured out like a dam wall breaking. Pain soared through my body...

"LILY!" I shrieked. "I FREAKIN' BELIEVE YOU!!"

And as if she was a magician, there was Lily, grinning with pride. My whole body started to tremble, and instantly Lily got the message.

"Jill! He BIT you! I'm so sorry I left-I-I just didn't realize he could be so dangerous... towards us! Come on... let's get out of here..."

"NO! STOP!" I yelled, but Lily didn't realize that her outreached arm was in grabbing distance of Moonie's mouth; his now dagger-like teeth ripped into her shoulder as Lily recoiled in horror.

"Ahhhhh!" she screamed. Blood dripped down her arm.

"Oh no... no, no, no! Lily we HAVE to get out of here!" I tried to help her through the stall door, however she collapsed in pain at my side.

"Come on, Lily!" I tried desperately to get us out, but it was no use. I certainly had no intention of letting her be bitten again, more or less drained of all her blood by Moon, so I ran quickly across the barn aisle to the Tack Room for the first aid kit.

Last week had been pretty uneventful, so I was asked to organize the first aid kit. Thank God I knew where it was...

I dragged the Human First Aid box into the stall while Moonie lay on the floor. Lily was still sprawled within reach of his mouth, so I hurriedly went to work.

The gash was as deep as mine, however it was bleeding more. I took the gauze and wrapped it around her shoulder as much as I could. Pain swelled up my own arm as I did so, but I ignored it. I didn't want her to be attacked again by that stupid horse.

Moonie turned to look at me. It was almost as if he heard what I was thinking. Tears flooded my face.

"Why did you do this?" I shrieked. "You almost killed us!"

Sobs filled my chest. I loved this horse. Moonie was my one and only horse... my fallback; however now all I could do was stare in hate and fear.

And then something amazing happened; Moonie's eyes met mine and his head relaxed. The piercing red disappeared and a hazel glow filled its place.

"I'm sorry..." he thought. Moon's voice was soft and sincere. "I don't know what's happening to me... I have to get away from here... so I can't hurt you any more..."

My heart stopped; Moonie was leaving, he thinks that I actually_ want _him to go!

"No! Moon I--"

Moonie's eyes flickered to red and I watched as he got up to leave.

"I'm so sorry, Jill..." he said. And with that, Moon disappeared; my one and only horse.

"No!" I tried to yell, but my lungs failed. My sobs were so heavy; I couldn't breathe.

I turned to Lily. Her arm had stopped bleeding, however she was out cold. For now I had to forget Moon; I struggled over to Lily's side and draped her good arm over my shoulder.

A mumble came from her mouth, and thankfully, Lily woke up.

"Jill... what happened?"

Tears streaked down my face...

"I'm so sorry... I didn't have a chance to warn you. Moon bit you... there was too much blood and I had to get the first aid kit so he didn't attack you again... you passed out, and, and..."

Sobs came again. I felt like a freaking retarded waterfall.

"Anyways, Moon left luckily, and now we should definitely get to someplace where we can rest until we recover..."

Lily's breathing slowly calmed and she was able to stand.

"Jill," she whispered, "do you know what this means?"

"Um...no... I'm not exactly sure I'm following here..."

"We are going to be vampires, too!"

The excitement in her voice made my head spin. This was wayyyyyyy over my head. My knees started to buckle, and I could feel my focus drifting...

"Jill, don't worry, we'll figure this out. Relax."

You have got to be kidding me.

"RELAX! Relax, Lily! I've just had my horse attack us, had my friend almost DIE, and I have just been notified that I am going to be a VAMPIRE! DO YOU THINK THAT I CAN RELAX!!"

"Well for now you might as well so I can have a back up medic in case I drop dead."

She was right. If I didn't relax things could get _a lot_ worse.

"I'm sorry Lily, I just-"

"Save your breath, Jill. It's okay... anyways I think I have an idea of where we could stay..."

"Where?" I asked.

"Roxanne's old place... she moved out in July, so it's empty and it should be unlocked..."

"Okay," I said, "let's go."

The pain seared through my body like someone continuously beating me with a baseball bat. The fire roared up and down my arm as Lily and I struggled to get to the trailer. Every few meters seemed like an eternity. The overwhelming anguish was hard to ignore. Tears streamed our faces like rain. Finally, we reached the door; the moon looming above us, ominous as ever...

"Here we go." Lily had managed to get the door open.

As we crawled through the trailer, we were able to locate the bedroom. Two twin beds were against the wall, so we could get some rest. Lily shuffled over to one and eased down onto the edge of it.

"What are we going to do?" I asked. My head was spinning with worry.

"Honestly, I don't know Jill." Lily responded. "We'll just have to wait till our transformation is complete..."

"Okay." I was satisfied with her answer. At least she finally didn't sound thrilled about something traumatic and out of the ordinary...

I slid onto the bed and rested my head on the pillow. For the next 3 days, my life was going to be an agonizing, living hell.


	5. Fire Storm

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 4: Fire Storm

Esmerelda's PoV

I was dreaming of vampires, Jitterbug and Moonie becoming one. And Jill had turned as well; I was the next target.

I woke with a start, my country radio station blaring to wake me up. It was 6:30; I had to be at the barn at 7 o'clock. I was late, as per usual.

I tumbled out of bed and groggily trudged to the kitchen. "I need to lay off the Van Helsing and Dracula," I grumbled.

I downed a glass of chocolate Silk, and then ran to my room to get dressed. Tough decision: jeans and a shirt, or jeans and a shirt.

After throwing on my jeans and a shirt- what a change! It's what I always wear! - I went to the bathroom and put on a thick layer of 70 SPF sunscreen. There are two shades of me, ghostly and lobster. I prefer ghostly.

I checked the time, 6:45 that's good, except the fact that this particular clock is 5 minutes slow. I should be leaving; I grabbed my hat and slammed it on my head, snatched my keys off the shelf, and threw my bag- and myself- into my blue truck.

I arrived at the barn at 7:00 exactly. I ran up to see my favourite pony, Miracle! I rounded the corner and straight into the barn. Then I stopped dead in my tracks.

I backed up two steps, my eyes had not lied. The bars between Jitterbug's and Moonie's stalls were warped, as if some sort of super-strength animal had lunged through them.

_Or a vampire_, I thought, _No! That's insane. They don't exist; you've read too much Dracula._

I continued into the barn, cautiously. "Lily? Jill?" I called, my only response being the wicker of the horses.

Just then Jill and Lily came around the corner. They looked strange; I couldn't put my finger on what though. Jill was holding something; something furry.

"Oh my god Esmerelda," Jill said. She dropped whatever she was holding. It landed and I could see its face, it was a coyote.

"Jill! What did you do?!" I cried, trying not to scare the horses.

"We- we are vampires," she said in a dazed-like state.

"No…." I looked closer, everything was there, it all fit, except for the logic part. "Am I going insane?"

"No, Moonie and Bug are too…." She continued, still dazed.

"Well, Jill, Lily. I don't want to be left out of this!" I declared.

"… but Bug ran away and Moon did too…" Jill was still going on.

"Jill, shut up. Please, its ok, someone bite me," I said sternly, planting my feet in the ground and holding out my arm.

I closed my eyes and felt sharp teeth sink into my arm, then the fire raged inside of me; I lost myself to the pain…


	6. Strength

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 5: Strength

Lily's PoV

This was stupid. It was suicidal! We were newborn vampires, and Esmerelda was _inviting_ us to bite her. And Jill actually listened. She listened!

Nobody even gave me the chance to offer another solution. We really should have found Bug and Moonie first, so that they could change Esmerelda. Did she really think we would leave her out of this? Seriously. But I'm assuming, due to the fact that Bug went for Moonie even though I was closer, that humans don't smell good to the vampire ponies. It would be safer for them to change her, and we wouldn't run the risk of losing control. Glad to know all that thinking was down the tubes.

But Jill had listened to Esmerelda, and had sunk her teeth deep in her arm. And now she was sucking away the life of her friend. Did she really expect to have enough control to successfully complete the transformation when she was barely a day old? I sighed inaudibly. That was Jill for you...

Did she expect me to save her? My position was no better than Jill's; we had woken at the same time. I smiled briefly at the memory of waking, of my reflection in Roxanne's mirror. I didn't really look that different, just prettier and with red eyes. But even though I still didn't reach 5 feet, I looked _dangerous_. I looked like I could take on a charging rhino and win; which I probably could, with my new speed and strength.

Three seconds had passed since Jill bit Esmerelda. It really was nice, how fast my brain worked now. I could look at every possibility in a matter of minutes. But now I didn't have that long. I only had time to act.

I didn't know if I had the strength to pull Jill from Esmerelda's weakening body. I didn't know if I had the strength to resist the blood lust myself. I didn't know if Jill had enough reason left to run away, to leave Rowena to the transformation. But I couldn't let my friend die; I had to try.

I yanked Jill roughly. It broke her hold on Esmerelda's arm, although it snapped, not up to par with vampire strength.

"Jill! Jill, that's Esmerelda. Remember Esmerelda? Come on, we have to go. Don't kill her, you're not hungry. We just fed, remember? Jill?"

And then the scent hit me. It was warm, sweet and lingering in my nose. It was hot brownies, gooey from the oven. It was chocolate chip cookies, burning the roof of my mouth. It was birthday cake, soft and moist on a hot summer day. It was everything I ever wanted.

My grip faltered on Jill's arm.

She felt it, but my wavering had affected her as my words had not. She had seen our friend in the frightened eyes of our prey. And now she was the one pulling me away, speaking fast and high to distract me. I heard none of it, locked on the struggle against the blood lust.

We ran, struggling with every step against the unquenchable thirst. It burned our throats, twisted our minds... But we had to be strong. For Esmerelda.

We dashed into the night, leaving her to writhe in the grip of the transformation. It was all we could do for her.

(A/N: Made some changes to Chapter 4: Fire Storm. It's minor but it needs to be there D)


	7. Shimmer

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 6: Shimmer

Jitterbug's PoV

I had killed Moonie. My best friend was dead, because of me. I was a monster.

As soon as I was far enough from the scent to think clearly, I vowed to never again kill one of my species. Or ex-species. I just couldn't take the guilt, the horrible regret that was crushing me. I was a monster.

I went hunting, searching for something I had no empathy for. I sighed as I drained yet another squirrel. They weren't very appetizing, but I thought I was finally full.

And then I froze. A scent reached me, different from the warm aroma of fresh blood. This one was sweet, icy and piercing in my sensitive nose. But it was also terribly familiar—I just couldn't place it.

I stepped cautiously around a tall oak tree, wary of whatever caused this smell.

I had gone crazy. It was the only explanation. Because right before me, easily seen despite the darkness, was Moonie. He was the source of the icy twinge in the cool night air.

But as I looked more closely, I saw the subtle changes death had gifted him with. The golden-brown of his coat was glossy and smooth, throwing faint sparkles in the moonlight. His long mane was straight and shiny, free for once from mats and tangles. But his eyes, once a gentle brown, were now red. They were dominant and predatory—no horse had ever worn such eyes before.

And that was when I realized what I had done. I hadn't killed him—not all the way. I had changed him, had damned my best friend to an eternity of nights.

And then, recognition flickered in those terrible eyes. Before my incredulous ones, they turned a murky hazel as Moonie's familiar voice sounded in my head.

_Jitterbug._

As soon as he was done speaking, the soothing brown color vanished to the red. But it was enough—I could now see my friend behind the monster he had become.

_Moonie_, I greeted him.

_Glad I found you._

_Me too. And Moon…_ I hesitated briefly. _I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. _

_It's okay. Besides, did you expect to just leave me behind?_

_I should've known you wouldn't let me go alone. Thanks. _

_Welcome. _

Before anything else could be said, our acute hearing picked up a faint voice, calling.

"Bu-ug!"

"Moo-ners!"

It was my girl, but also…not. Her voice was higher than before, and sounded like tiny silver bells. But the tone and cadence was unmistakably her.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Moonie's ears prick at Jill's voice. We trotted forward in unison, falling into a familiar—but unusually fast—rhythm as we blew past the trees separating us from our goal.

"Bug!" Lily smacked into me, wrapping her arms around my neck and hugging me fiercely. I was distantly aware of a similar reaction from Jill, but it didn't really matter. All that mattered was the Lily still loved me. She didn't care that I was a monster.

"I missed you so much! Don't you ever run off like that again. Bug? Promise me you'll stay."

I was sidetracked from her question as I looked into her serious eyes. They weren't the dark green I'd been expecting—they were a light butterscotch. And her skin… She'd always been pale, but this was ridiculous. Where was her funny T-shirt tan and the sunburn that refused to fade from her cheeks?

"I'm a vampire too now. Isn't that cool?" I shouldn't have been surprised that she knew what I was thinking. She'd always been perceptive. But the crazy excitement I'd seen the night I'd first awoken was back in her eyes. It frightened me.

_This isn't a book. We're monsters. Don't you get that?_

"Monsters? Bug, you're not a monster. Of course not, you're still Bug. You're my pony and I love you no matter what."

_You don't understand! We're stuck like this, exactly like this, forever. And we'll keep killing things, living, breathing things, forever. They'll die; they'll actually die. This isn't a book—these are _real_ lives we're talking about. We exist at their expense. _

"I know," she replied softly. "But tell me Bug. Do you mourn the grass you eat?"

_No,_ I answered warily.

"Exactly. It's just the food chain, the circle of life. And we're even defying it. I won't eat humans and you won't eat horses. It's the best we can do."

Unfortunately, it made sense.

"See? It'll be fine, just wait." She kissed my nose before turning to Jill and Moonie. I suddenly recalled their existence.

"Esmerelda will have stopped bleeding by now," Jill stated. "We should go see her."

"Yep. Time to work on your bareback skills. If you guys don't mind, of course," she added, frowning slightly as she looked to me.

I shook my head, my long forelock flopping in my eyes. Lily smoothed it absentmindedly as Moonie answered for us.

_We've never minded before._

"Great! Let's go."

She vaulted smoothly onto my back, laughing as Jill misjudged her first leap. And then we left, cantering towards the place we'd once called home.


	8. Time

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 7: Time

Esmerelda's PoV

I regained consciousness. I was hardly aware of anything, just floating.

A sound brought me back, a loud neigh. I knew that voice… who's was it? Realization hit me; it was my horse, my boy! Miracle! I struggled the rest of the way awake.

Smells and sounds flooded me, muddled for only a few seconds. I was alert; I stood up, feeling the new power in my muscles. I felt strength in me like I had never felt before; I stretched and examined my skin. It was normally a ghostly colour, but now it was stunning, like ivory.

"Hey there, don't be upset," I said as I walked over to him. I opened his stall door; he always would walk next to me as I did some chores around the barn. "Let's go see what day it is, baby."

I had a feeling it would be three days later, but I was wrong. It was only an hour later. This couldn't have been right, I checked another clock, same time, same date.

"Hmm, this isn't right. Jill and Lily said it was three days, as do all of the books," I puzzled to Miracle, whom sighed in response.

I saw a rabbit outside of the barn; it reminded me I had to feed. I moved with such agility and speed, I caught that rabbit before it even knew I was there. I drained it and filled myself; Miracle screamed in protest. Clearly he didn't like my use of my new speed.

"Miracle, I want to change you, I want to be with you forever. Can I? Please Miracle," I pleaded with him, even if he didn't understand me.

Or did he? He seemed to offer his neck to me, was this an invitation to turn him? I decided it was. Eternity would be a long time without my horse.

I sunk my teeth into his flesh. He went down, he was in pain! My horse, the animal I loved so much was in pain! And I had inflicted it upon him.

"No, baby its ok. Sweet boy, it's ok. I'm here, I will make it stop," I said calmly. I placed my hands on his neck; I don't know what made me do this. Perhaps a gut feeling. I then imagined me taking his pain, his fear, everything. I felt it run up my arms and be consumed by me, it drained my energy. I had to be strong, for my boy, my only boy.

I kept pulling his pain and fear, sending him my strength, my power. I could feel fatigue plaguing my senses. Then I felt it, Miracle's soul surge beneath my hands. He had begun to come back, I disconnected with him and my arms seemed too heavy, my head ached; I needed to feed again.

I dragged myself upward, I felt so heavy, so cumbersome. Somehow I managed to snare two rabbits, one for me and one for Miracle.

_Thank you, Esmerelda. This is very generous of you. _Miracle's voice tumbled into my fatigued brain. But Miracle didn't have a voice, how could this be him?

_I don't know either Esmerelda, it just is. And quite frankly, I like it. Saves us from misunderstanding each other. _Miracle's voice continued. He sighed and helped me up from my heap on the floor, _Come, let's take you inside the barn. _

I mumbled a response; I could feel myself growing slightly stronger, and disgusted at myself, from the rabbit. "I'm still tired," I stated.

_Then pull strength from me, as you did the pain,_ Miracle said. I placed my hands on his neck again and pulled a small amount of strength from him, just enough to bring me to full alertness.

"I prefer that to feeding."

_Then perhaps that is what you should do from now on?_

"I suppose I could… Hey look! Lily, Jill, Moonie, and JB are back! Let's go welcome them!" I exclaimed.

_We shall, vault on; we will go faster as a team!_

I vaulted up onto his back, my black hair cascaded about my shoulders as we cantered swiftly to greet our returning friends.


	9. Perfection

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 8: Perfection

Jill's PoV

"Damn!"

My vault onto Moonie's back failed. And Lily was there to laugh at me.

"Haha, come on, Jill," she chuckled, "you can do better than _that_."

I glared at Lily.

"Well at least your horse isn't _taller_ than you!"

"Sorry Jill." Lily smiled, "Do you want a boost up?"

"Haha very funny." I retorted. Just as I was about to try a running vault onto Moonie's back, he teasingly knelt down on his front legs so I could get on.

Lily fell over into hysterics. Even though I felt like protesting, I couldn't help but smile. Moon always had a way of helping me relax, even when I felt as if I was about to break.

"Thanks, Moon-man."

I slid on easily and Lily and I cantered back towards Ride On.

The ride back only took us a few hours since Moon and Jitter were so fast. And that gave me a lot of time to think. Since he was changed, I noticed that Moonie had different qualities about him. His once tangled mane was now an array of gorgeous colors. Auburn, topaz, gold, and brown, glittered in the sunlight like never before. Also, Moon never seemed tired during our ride at all. He cantered along at the same pace, never stumbling or wheezing. These, and other characteristics scared me, though. For so long, I had been used to _my Moonie_, when now, I felt as if I was on some foreign object. I had enjoyed combing out the once-tangled mane. I loved every one of Moon's cute flaws—however, that was all gone now. Everything was so different—and that's when it hit me. The reason I was so bothered by this, was because I hadn't just lost my horse; I had lost myself. That once flawed girl was gone… and a beautiful teen filled her place. My complexion was that of a Covergirl model; my eyes were a piercing auburn. The once tan skin disappeared and was replaced with a pale gold. After our transformation, Lily and I seemed to stare in the mirror for an hour examining our new features. While Lily shrieked in excitement, all I could do was stare in astonishment. I didn't have a clue how convenient my new identity was going to play out in the future. And so far, all it had done was stir up trouble in my life.

Moonie suddenly jerked to a stop. We were finally at the barn. Lily slid off of Jitter.

_Do you need me to kneel down? _Moonie taunted.

"No, I'm fine." I slid off with a grin and gave Moon a hug.

"Thanks, Moon." I whispered.

He nuzzled my arm as I lead him into the barn.

"Jill! Lily!" I heard Esmerelda's voice.

There was Esmerelda on top of Miracle walking towards us.

"Esmerelda!" I screeched, "I am so sorry for biting you! I probably shouldn't have since I was a newborn… I could have killed you!" I sat down on a stool as reality set in.

"Jill, it's okay. I asked you anyways! No harm done."

"So what's new?" Lily questioned.

"Well…" a smiled spread across Esmerelda's mouth, "Miracle's a vampire!"

"EEEEK!" Lily jumped up and down excitedly. "Now we're all vampires!"

"Oh yay…" I said under my breath. Just what we need. Six newborn vampires residing in a residential area. Great.

"So, what are we going to do, guys?" I asked, "We have to figure out something before Brie and Holly come back to Ride On, or we are seriously in trouble."

Lily spoke first, "I know how to take care of Brie. Don't ask me how, you won't like it."

"I don't want to know…" Esmerelda shuddered.

"Okay, that leaves one left to go. Holly. However, I don't think that she'll be a problem. She isn't coming back from Europe for another month, so we'll have all the time we need."

"Yep," Lily said, "I think we won't have too much to worry about anymore."

"What do you mean?" I inquired.

"You'll see…" and with that, Lily sauntered off to Brie as she was pulling into the parking lot.

--

(A/N: thanks wolf's paradise for our first review!! (sorry for the delay XD))


	10. Accident

Lily's PoV

When Esmerelda and Jill had been debating what to do about Brie, I couldn't resist taking care of it.

I slipped silently down the hill towards her parked car, wondering what would scare most completely. People would do anything out of fear and she was no exception.

My plan was simple, really. I would show off some of my super cool vampy moves to scare the crap out of her. Then I would tell her our cover story, threatening her with death if she failed to circulate and stick to the story. And the beauty of it was that, if she told people vampires had taken the horses, nobody would believe her. She'd be locked up in the nuthouse, kept out of our hair forever.

This was going to be fun.

"Hey Brie," I called as she climbed out of her car. Had she always been so slow and clumsy? Every movement looked awkward, heavy, and everything about her soft, warm-blooded body cried weakness. I smiled slightly, enjoying the powerful feeling coursing through me.

"Hi Lily," she answered me.

"So guess what!" I told her, using the excited, fangirl-y voice I knew she hated. She couldn't do anything but hate it, and anything that made me happy.

"Something to do with Twilight?" she asked. Everyone knew I only used my fangirl voice when I was talking about books, usually by Stephenie Meyer.

"Obviously."

"You met Edwin?"

"It's Edward. And no."

She rolled her eyes. "Tell me or leave."

"I'm a vampire," I informed her, grinning from ear to ear.

"Ha. Good one."

"Actually, it is." I dropped the happy act, switching my excited grin for a sinister one. "Want to see?"

Faster than she could comprehend, I darted to her car. What had she named it? Blubby, or something to that effect. Poor little Blubby.

I ripped the door off easily, smirking as she gaped. I slowly tore the metal as easily as I would paper, laughing at her incredulous eyes. As I advanced towards her, I tossed the twisted remains of Blubby's door over her head. She screamed shrilly as the metal missed her head by inches.

"See Brie?" I nearly crooned, my voice soft and derisive. "I _am_ a vampire."

She took a step backwards.

"And Jill and Esmerelda are too."

Two more steps.

"And you know what?"

Step.

"We're taking our ponies; Jitterbug, Moonie, and Miracle are coming with us. And you're going to help."

Brie turned and ran, trying desperately to escape this monster she saw. She leapt into her car and sped off.

"Lily!" I heard Esmerelda call.

"Lily, what did you do?" Jill asked anxiously, though the answer was right before her.

"I got a little carried away, I hadn't meant to rip the door to shreds… We'll have to leave," I answered her.

"Where will we go?"

"Somewhere cloudy."

"The rest of the horses?"

"We'll ask Marie to feed them. She lives close by."

"We're just going to take the horses?" Jill asked.

"Unless you've got enough money to pay for them."

"I don't like it. We're just going to dump this on Holly?"

I shrugged. "You have a better idea?"

They didn't. Of course they didn't. We were vampires now, and vampires are nomads.

Bug came up behind me and nuzzled my shoulder, not needing sound to convey acceptance and forgiveness for the terrible fright I had just issued. I hugged him tightly as I sent out a wordless apology to Brie, wherever she was now.

Esmerelda, Jill, and I mounted our ponies in silence, and the six of us cantered to the north by the light of the guiding moon.


	11. New Discoveries

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 10: New Discoveries

Lily's PoV

I didn't know—or care, really—how long it had been since we fled Ride On. I didn't know where we were, either; only that we were quite far away. We were far enough from California to be secure enough to rest. Granted, we weren't tired, but the chance to relax would be greatly appreciated.

After a seemingly endless stretch of constant rain, the sky was clear, exposing a glowing slice of moon. We stopped in a small clearing and lay on the grass, staring at the silver trees against the purple backdrop of night. As we became immobile, the soft chatter of forest creatures resumed its even pace.

I knew, of course, that Jill and Esmerelda were talking. With my sensitive hearing and all the extra room in my head, it was simple to keep a tab on their conversation. But I did my best to tune them out, letting myself fall into the endless mystery the stars presented.

I had always been good at ignoring the world, at being consumed by whatever fantasy struck my interest. True, no one ever won a prize for daydreaming, but it was a useful skill to have during school hours. Tonight I was a bird, a graceful hawk, nearly lost in the darkness. In my head I soared up high, twirling and diving in the cool air.

Huh. That was weird. I didn't remember closing my eyes. But I must have, for I no longer saw the moon from the perspective of the ground. All I saw was through the hawk's keen eyes.

I was up very high. Far below I could see Bug, Mooners, Miracle, Esmerelda, and Jill—well, specks that resembled them—darting through the forest. As I swooped closer, I heard them calling my name. They were looking for me.

_I'm right here,_ I tried to tell them. But all that came out was the shriek of a hawk.

Jitterbug, Moonie, and Miracle's heads snapped up simultaneously, and they gazed at me with wide golden eyes.

_Lily?_ I heard Bug ask incredulously.

_Yep,_ I answered as I landed lightly on his withers, careful not to grip too tightly with my talons.

_You're a bird. _

_No duh. _

_How is that possible?_ asked Moonie, a slightly nervous edge to his thoughts.

_It must be her ability, _put in Miracle, _as the transfer of strength is Esmerelda's. _

If it was possible for a bird to snort, I would have. _No guys, this is just a daydream. I do it all the time. _

_Then wake up,_ Bug challenged.

I focused on what I felt—what I really felt, not what I imagined feeling—in hopes that it would bring me back to reality. But in all honesty I felt…like a bird. My arms were wings and my lips curved into a beak. I couldn't snap out of my daydream.

Jill and Esmerelda chose that moment to make their reappearance. "Oh my god, it's a vampire bird!" shrieked Jill, her voice shooting through two octaves.

"Calm down Jill, its Lily. Can't you tell? Normal hawks don't roll their eyes."

_How do I change back?_ I asked them.

"However you got like that, I suppose."

I thought of my normal body, of how it felt to have hair and fingers and clothes. And then I was me, sitting sideways on Bug's smooth back.

"Welcome back."

"Cool talent!"

"Thanks."

Jill's PoV

"Uggg…" I mumbled. I had nearly tripped over Lily and Esmerelda's resting figures.

I was in a sour mood, as usual. Nothing good had come out of being a vampire; not one single stinking thing. Lily, on the other hand, got all the fun. After she had discovered she could transform into a hawk, Lily flew around for hours, enjoying dive-bombing us from every angle. She circled the sky and completed loop-the-loops with grace. As I was jealously pondering Lily's special talent, I noticed Moonie staring at me.

"What?" I asked. I knew Moon had heard me; oh boy, here it comes…

_Jill. Stop with the moping around. You're such a pessimist_,Moonie snorted.

"Come on, Moon-man! I can't be the only one who doesn't like this!"

A small smile crept up Moonie's face. _Actually, you are._

"I'm hopeless, aren't I?" I walked over and curled up next to Moonie's side.

I was just kidding, Jill. You're not totally hopeless. In fact, I think you might be the only rational one.

"Cut it out, Moon-man. Lily and Esmerelda are just as sane as I am."

You know what I mean; basically, you're the only one who knows how serious this could turn out to be.

"I know, but I just wish there was some possible way to relax through all of this."

Haha, yeah, me too. Hey, I know what we can do… how would you like to go for a ride Jill?

"Yes!! You read my mind."

Don't I always?

"Very funny, Moon."

I slid onto Moonie's back. "Lily, Esmerelda, I'm going for a ride. See you later."

"Whatever…" Lily answered groggily. I could tell Lily didn't really care, as long as she could stay motionless for a few hours.

Can we go now? Moonie whined. He was the only horse that wanted to go 24/7.

"Haha, you tell me Mooners."

I say, "YES"!

I was nearly thrown off by Moonie's excited rear. We started cantering towards the north. The stars shown brightly in the sky. Everything was so perfect—no Brie yelling at me to slow Moonie down, no small, cramped arena to be restricted to—just a meadow and the perfect ride. I wished I could stop time and stay in this moment forever.

And then, I fell. I landed with a thud and rolled across the grass. I imagined it was because I hadn't been holding on to Moonie's mane at all with my hands; however, something told me otherwise. Moonie's body stood frozen in mid-canter. Two of his legs barely touched the ground. It was almost as if someone had stopped time… someone, as in me.

I ran over to Moonie's still body.

"I wonder…"

I gently touched Moonie's side with my hand…

"EEEEEK!" I screamed. Moonie came to life and started to gallop across the frozen field. I was a little terrified of how fast he moved when I touched him.

"Moon!!" I yelled. His neck curved quickly, causing his body to follow, and in less than two seconds, there he was.

How did you… do that? I didn't even feel you fall off!

I laughed at him jokingly and then explained. Moon stared at me for a long time.

Wait, so you can stop time, and then release frozen forms from it… like me?

"Yep, I guess so."

Weird. So how do you unfreeze everything else?

"Hold on, let me think…"

I closed my eyes and thought back to the moment when we were cantering in the field, and then I was there. Time had started up again as I opened my eyes. I was on Moonie's back again and we were going throughout the meadow.

"Whoa."

Whoa is right. So I guess all you have to do is think about the point in time that you want to be at and well... you're there.

"Yeah, I guess so…"

Moonie slowed to a walk. He strolled through the grass and came to a halt by a tree.

Jill…

"I know," I said.

I understood what he meant. If I could go back to any point in time that I desired, that meant I could rewind it, too. I could go back to a time when vampires were just a dream. I could make us all human again.


	12. Danger, Will Robinson

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 11: Danger, Will Robinson

Miracle's PoV

We walked slowly through the forest, not really knowing where to go. In the distance, birds chirped; however the ones near us where silent due to our unnatural presence. I heard the soft footfalls of Esmerelda, Jill, and Lily as they walked beside us. I listened to the plops of Moonie's and Jitterbug's hooves.

A soft wind blew towards us, bringing new scents to us from ahead. An unknown smell caught my attention. Danger!

_There is danger ahead, we should be prepared._ I thought quickly to the rest of the group. They all stopped and sniffed the air.

We stood ready for what was to come, all hoping this encounter would not be fatal to any of us.

My keen ears picked up their nearly noiseless steps, and then their shapes slowly drifted out of the shadows. They halted naught twenty yards away; their eyes fierce and blazing. They crouched ready to attack.

"Oh unicorn turds," Esmerelda swore.

They sprung and the next thing I knew, they where all frozen mid spring!

_Ah my dear friend, this is exactly as you said it was,_ I thought to Moonie as Jill moved over to Lily and 'unfroze' her.

"Oh my lord! They are real!" Lily exclaimed. Lily and Jill went on to squeal over one of the vampires. I snorted and Esmerelda laughed.

They continued to squeal for longer than Esmerelda could handle.

"Ok people! We do have a predicament on hand right now!" she said in exasperation as it appeared that Jill and Lily were not going to quit any time soon. She then pulled out a baseball bat (don't ask where from) and beat the girls off of the 'frozen' vampire.

"Right," Jill said, tearing herself away from the frozen form of this 'Edward' character. "So, maybe we should unfreeze Bella, cause she is most likely to understand?"

The other two nodded in agreement, still shooting longing glances at Edward whilst imagining booty-shaking dance parties to Rihanna and Daft Punk.

Jill walked over to the girl vampire and unfroze her…

Jitterbug's PoV

Jill flitted over to the brunette female—Bella they'd called her—and unfroze her. Bella hurtled forward a few more steps before she whipped around, her blood-red eyes wide. She hurtled back to the smallest vampire, prying frantically at her frozen form.

"Alice!" she cried. "Alice, wake up!" Then she gasped, turning to the bronze-haired male.

"Edward!" And then she was at his side, sobbing as she failed to budge him. "No," she moaned. "No, Edward, no."

I saw Lily, Jill, and Esmerelda exchange a significant glance. They hadn't expected Bella to panic. Jill arched one eyebrow, clearly asking who was going to explain to Bella. Esmerelda grimaced, displaying her customary distaste for the vampire. Lily shrugged before stepping forwards slightly.

"Bella?" she called softly.

"You!" Bella screeched at Lily. "You killed Edward!" She launched herself at Lily—_my _Lily—with vengeance and bloodlust burning in her eyes. I growled sharply. How _dare_ she hurt my girl. Lily was _mine._ This crazy vampire had no right to hurt her.

I slammed into Bella before she was halfway to Lily, the crash shattering the eerie silence that accompanied the freezing of time. I felt a twinge of smugness at her shocked expression. I used to be faster than humans—now I was faster than vampires.

And then the recognition flickered in her eyes.

"I know you," she whispered, too stunned to move from where I had knocked her to the ground. "I almost ate you."

A memory rose to the front of my mind. It was clouded, as were all my memories from before, but it was clear enough for me to realize that the moonlit figure from the night of my transformation now sat before me. Icy white and devastatingly perfect, her appearance had once frightened me. Now though, her flawless features and colorless skin were all too common. She wasn't nearly as terrifying as she'd once been.

"_You_ turned Bug?" Lily asked incredulously, appearing in my peripheral vision.

"I didn't know he'd be changed," she mumbled, looking down. "I thought the venom would kill him."

Lily grinned hugely, throwing her arms around the psycho that had just tried to kill her. "Thank you so much!!" she cried, hugging Bella tightly. "That was the best thing that ever happened to me!" She jumped back, still beaming, and turned to the other girls. "She changed Bug!" she exclaimed, as if they hadn't heard every word that had just been said.

"So we gathered," answered Esmerelda dryly.

"I'm sorry," Bella told the girls as she stood, brushing the dirt from her jeans. "I wouldn't have attacked you had I known you were just kids."

Esmerelda bristled. "We're not kids," she snapped.

Bella smiled condescendingly. "Of course you're not." But then her features crumpled, her eyes widening in pain. "But why did you kill Edward?" Her voice was filled with despair.

Lily and Jill laughed in unison. "We would _never_ kill Edward!"

"We love him too much."

"He's too perfect!"

"And gorgeous."

"And sweet."

Esmerelda rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, we get it. Now if you'd stop obsessing, you could recall why we're here."

"Then what did you do to him?" Bella asked, still despairing.

"I can freeze time," Jill shrugged. "I unfroze all of us, and you, so we could tell you not to kill us." Excitement appeared in her eyes. "Let's unfreeze Edward next!"

"Yes!" Lily agreed eagerly.

_Wait,_ I cautioned her. _Isn't he a bit prone to overreaction? We should do him last, and let Bella explain to him. _

"Wait a minute, Bug's right," she sighed. "Edward will overreact. We'll do him last."

"Alice next," Esmerelda decided. "She can explain to Jasper."

"Yeah," Jill giggled. "She's got him so whipped. He'll be no problem."

Jill darted to Alice's figure and touched her shoulder lightly. As did Bella, Alice dashed forward before stopping abruptly. She turned to Bella, eyes wide, before darting back to the blonde male. That must be Jasper.

Bella opened her mouth, as if to speak, but she was cut off. "Really?" Alice asked her, turning around and dancing to her side.

Bella smiled slightly. "Really."

"Cool. Do Jasper now."

I suddenly recalled Lily telling me that Alice could see the future. Had she seen Bella explaining everything to her?

Jill looked gleefully at Lily, smiling widely.

"I know!" she squealed in response, her voice shooting up with enthusiasm. I shook my head, laughing silently at their ridiculous obsession. Lily turned to smirk at me. "You're just jealous that ponies can't read." But she walked over and wrapped her arms around my neck, showing that no offense was intended. I pondered her statement briefly. It was true, I had never learned to read. Was this a skill I should have?

I didn't have long to wonder about my education—or lack of it. Jill was already skipping happily over to Jasper, arm outstretched in anticipation…

Jill's PoV

_Jill, be careful…_ Moonie warned.

"Moon, chill, its okay..." I said calmly.

I tapped the frozen vampire…

SMACK! All of a sudden I was forced with huge momentum through the air, and into a tree.

About ten yards away from me stood Jasper, releasing a demonic snarl while crouched in front of 'twinkle toes'.

"JASPER!!" Alice screeched. Suddenly, her face turned worried…

I knew this was a bad idea! Moonie half-snarled.

Another snarl sounding like an angry bull filled the air… and there was Moonie, in all of his stupid, protective glory. If they thought we were weird a few seconds ago, they must really think we're crazy now.

"Aw, come on' Moon…" I moaned.

_You have got to be kidding me—_ he growled … I cut him off short. I wasn't in too good of a mood from hitting the tree and I didn't need babying.

"I CAN SERIOUSLY HANDLE THIS MYSELF!" I yelled. This wasn't the time for a babysitter. I needed to figure this out on my own. Test myself, in a certain sense. If I was going to embrace this whole "vampire" thing, I had to figure out how to deal with a situation like this… because Moonie might not always be there to back me up.

Alice glared at Jasper. I could tell that they were having one of their deep "eye" conversations. It was annoying not being able to understand it.

"Jasper, you have no right—"

"ALICE! That thing could have mauled you to death!" Jasper stared at her deeply.

Moonie snorted and stamped his hoof at the ground. Jasper turned quick and glared at him. I ran in between them and started yelling before all hell would break loose.

"ALRIGHT WILL EVERYONE JUST CHILL!! Jasper, you don't know us, but we aren't here to kill or attack you guys in anyway, shape, or form. Just _please_, listen to Alice…"

Jasper turned towards Alice. "Is this true?"

"Yes, just relax and then Jill can unfreeze everyone else."

"Whatever, you say, but—"

"Jasper," Alice gave him the same deep expression from earlier, "_believe_ me."

"Alright, but can I ask a question…" Jasper turned to look at me.

"Sure." I replied.

"What is _with _that girl?"

I turned to look at where he was pointing. Rolling on the ground, laughing hysterically, was Lily. I should have known.

"Um…"

"Is she having a seizure or something?" he asked carefully.

Lily went into bigger, smiling, hysterics after this. Maybe he was right…

"No, no…" Lily choked out between laughs. "This is just too funny…" She laughed even harder this time.

"Lily, GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF!" I snarled, but not much anger was enforced, as I was choking back laughter, too.

While I was watching Lily, Alice had explained everything to Jasper.

"Oh, I get it now." He smiled. "I must apologize for my rudeness. Sorry about smashing you into a tree like that…"

"It okay," I returned the grin, "No harm done."

Moonie snorted again.

"Alright, who next?" I asked, trying to ignore Moon's protest.

"Emmett." Alice replied.

I tapped the bear-sized vampire softly…

He fell forward with a BOOM! "What the HELL just happened?!" Emmett asked. "And what are _they_ here for? I swear I'll beat them to a pulp if they have done something to—"

"Nothing… I'll explain later." Alice quickly said.

"What do you mean?"

"They're not going to hurt us," Alice replied, "just passing through".

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I don't see the future for nothing you know."

"Okay, whatever." Emmett went to sit under a tree.

"WHY couldn't you be more like him, Jasper? Why do you have to overreact? I can fend for myself, you know…" Alice asked.

"Alice, you know how I feel…"

However, I didn't hear the rest of his argument. My eyes moved to Bella. She was staring at Edward like he was… well… dead. I walked toward her slowly.

"Um, you okay?"

"Ya, I'm fine…" she whispered.

Bella looked like she was about to have a coronary…

"I'll unfreeze him right now."

"Oh, please do…"

I strolled over to Edward. His body was frozen like a statue; he looked so… beautiful. I stood there, ignoring everyone else and just stared. Honestly, the description of him in Twilight was _horrible_ compared to this.

_Wow._ I thought. This was really going to be hard to do.

Edward's face was perfectly shaped, his eyes a piercing topaz. What a work of art. I was seriously considering taking a few million mental snapshots of him, when Bella cleared her throat.

"Oh, sorry…" I said awkwardly.

She smiled. "He's dazzling you and he's frozen! Ha, he'll love to hear this one…"

I was pretty sure I knew what she meant by that, but I ignored it and tapped Edward on the shoulder…

You know that feeling when you get the wind knocked out of you… well let's just say Edward didn't have to dazzle to do that…

I was on the ground (second time in a row today) and Edward was snarling his wide teeth at me. He looked seriously terrifying; however I wasn't scared one bit.

Honestly, reading about something, and actually seeing something are WAY two different things. Edward's swift movement was flawless; his posture elegant, but at the same time forceful. Dazzled didn't even describe how I felt.

"Wow." I said aloud, admiring his gorgeous features.

And like he knew what I was thinking, he smiled and started laughing.

"I'm married you know." Edward whispered.

If I could have turned red just then, I would have, _trust me_. Obviously, I had forgotten the one most important detail about Edward; he could read minds. A wave of embarrassment came over me.

"Sorry. Let me help you up." He smiled his perfectly white teeth at me and pulled me upright.

"You okay?"

"Uh huh…" I said too dazzled for words. Now I knew what Bella meant; not as fiction, but as a fact.

Edward started laughing. "Did I tell you I can read minds?" he questioned.

"I knew that," I moaned. "But I sadly forgot this time." He laughed and then smiled his stupid crooked smile. That put me over the edge.

"EDWARD!"

Thankfully, Bella had called Edward over immediately once she had seen that everything was okay. Edward gracefully pivoted around towards Bella and arrived to her in one stride. He hugged her tightly and smiled. "I do dazzle people, don't I?"

"Frequently." She smiled.

"Oh my God…" I whispered. Lily and Esmerelda snickered. Was I that obvious?

_Yes, you were. _Moonie smiled, _What happened to going to Vegas with me, Jill? You know, it's not fair to leave a guy at the altar…_

I burst into laughter. I couldn't control it. I hugged Moon and sighed. What a silly horse.

_Hey, I'll hold you to it._ _You said it like fifty times at Ride On. Do you people really think that we horses don't care about what you're saying?_

"Haha, occasionally." I whispered.

_Well I do. _Moonie winked.

"Awwww, I feel so special." I laughed and turned back to the group. Bella had finished going over the details with Edward so he was caught-up.

"Well now that I know what's going on," Edward continued, "maybe we should go back to the house so we can figure this all out."

"EEEEK!" Lily smiled. "Let's go people!"

Bella grabbed Edward's hand and pulled him towards the house. I slowly trudged through the grass. Bella was so lucky. I wish I had a guy like that.

Edward turned as he was walking and smiled. He gave a little chuckle and turned his attention back on Bella.

_Vegas, Jill._ Moonie reminded me. I returned time to the rest of the world.

I think it's going to take awhile to get used to this whole "mind reading thing"…

--

(A/N: Do you guys like? PLEASE review... we're on our knees, we have 3 reviews; two are from Kathy's sister... PLEASE REVIEW!!)


	13. You Can See it in My Eyes

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 12: You Can See it in My Eyes

Esmerelda's PoV

"_I know you can hear me; I know you can feel me; I can't live without you; God, please make me better; I wish I wasn't the way I am…_" I sung in a deep guy-ish voice that was a lame attempt at P. Diddy… I then switched to a higher girl voice that was supposed to be Keyshia Cole, "_If I told you once, I told you twice; You can see it in my eyes; I'm all cried_--"

"Would you please shut up?!" snapped Jasper. "That's the third time you've sung that song!"

"You know what? Hagrid's ten times the man you'll ever be Neville!" I retorted.

"Er… that's Jasper, Esmerelda," Bella said slowly.

"I know that! Are you retarded or something?!"

"What!?" Edward screeched defensively.

"It's ok; Esmerelda just loves quotes… and singing," said Lily. Thus followed a pregnant silence even Lily and Jill failed to break with their fangirl comments.

"Ah, here we are," Emmett said cheerfully, slicing through the quiet. "I've got the booze, the babes, the hot guys for you girls." He looked around at the death glares being thrown about, "Oh wait, we're not having an orgy today? My bad."

(A/N: He didn't have any booze, babes, or hot guys, which was too bad really because that would have been awesome to write and our rating would be M… QPL: Darn. Our story really needs some hot guys…that aren't married, I mean.)

In the silence that followed, I looked around. There was a large white house with wide windows. Inside I could see a gathering of vampires and a werewolf who look very out of place. He looked up and saw us; he grabbed a bronze haired girl's hand and headed out of the door.

"Hey," he said, walking up to us.

"Hello, Jake," Bella said. Jill and Lily looked at each other, eyes sparkling at the thought of meeting another character. I rolled my eyes; Miracle snorted.

I continued to analyze the structure. It was actually quite lovely, but then again, what in Northern California isn't beautiful? The house had black trim around the windows and the eves of the house, and the shape was simply stunning. I peered inside; the dork-wads—I mean Cullens; I am still in a ruddy mood from them cutting off my singing… it wasn't that abrasive to the ears, was it? Don't answer that. Anyway, the Cullens were saying something but I didn't care. Miracle would fill me in on the majority of it later anyway.

The interior, from what I could see around the people and walls and other obstructions, was white, with black leather sofas around a fireplace, which was also white. There was also a black railing that followed the spiral staircase to the upstairs; there was also white carpet—what a surprise.

_Are they colour-blind or something? I mean honestly couldn't they have coloured the house?_ I asked Miracle. He laughed; he had a laugh that sounded like the deep strumming of a guitar that thrummed against my head as he sent me this emotion. I loved it when he laughed. It just put everything into place; everything would be fine for me if Miracle was fine.

My musings over Miracle were cut short by a glare from Edward; did he really have to be such a tight ass? He glared again; I smiled sweetly at him. I had to be nice to all of them; there would be hell to pay if I wasn't.

"… and this is Esmerelda," Lily was saying. I snapped back to reality.

"Oh, yeah hi…" I said, fumbling slightly on my words; can't I do anything right?

"And that is Jitterbug, Moonie, and Miracle," Lily concluded. The horses dipped their heads as she said their names. I sighed and hugged Miracle's neck, thanking god that I had him.

"So what's the problem? Because you were trying to attack us earlier…" I asked. Curiosity had overcome me—ever since I had become a vampire all of my moods had been so freaking drastic, and switched like a bad PMS. It sucked… a lot.

"Well," Emmett said, "There have been attacks all around the world. We don't really know the details… but it looked like the work of newborns and something else…" he finished cryptically.

"What something else? Like some sort of power, or what?" Jill asked, her interest spiking.

"We don't really know, but we heard rumors of three newborns and some other creature, so we automatically assumed it was you… Sorry we jumped to conclusions; we didn't know if you horses had any powers," Jasper said.

"Oh, that's ok, we didn't get….." Lily was saying, but my hearing and vision were blurring, and everything felt fuzzy. What was happening to me?! My world began to spin; I clung to Miracle.

"Esmerelda? Esmerelda!" Lily cried, watching my knees buckle.

"I'll… I need… don't… follow me…." I managed to say, as pain was seeped into my body like blood into a cloth. I disjointedly clambered onto Miracle's back. _Run, Miracle, just run… far away…_ I thought frantically to Miracle… I had to get away! I felt like an injured rabbit being chased by a fit wolf; there was no way I could win.

I had completely lost my vision now, my hearing was nearly gone, I couldn't smell anything, nor could I feel Miracle underneath me; what was going on? I was completely bewildered; I heard a faint thump and felt something on my side before I lost consciousness…

I heard the faint pattering of rain… I heard it splash against the leaves of the trees; I heard it soak into the earth. I felt the surge of the earth welcoming this wetness; the trees and plants rejoicing in the feeling of cool rain quenching their thirst. I felt the wetness of the drop soak into my skin, the cool air around me, and the damp earth under me.

I heard the soft creaking of the trees as they swayed in happiness to the rain, I heard them whisper softly. The plants muttered to each other, telling stories. I heard and felt surges of life around me, the bugs in the dirt, the squirrels hiding from the rain in the trees, and the birds folding their wings in the sweeping branches above me. Over me, the sky moaned and sighed with the falling rain; the soft breeze that sailed through brought stories of all it had passed.

The sky surged with an energy I had never felt before. The earth surged back. They were talking! The sky and the earth were speaking to each other like old friends in a conversation that never grew old, never wore out. I felt Miracle's presence near to me; I opened my eyes. The gray sky filtered through the sweeping canopy from the pines. Rain dripped trough the needles. Each drop that landed on my skin had a fizzle of energy; the trees had a calming energy.

Each part, every being was connected to me. I could feel each and every one—the force each one held, the story everything told. The constant thrum of energy from the sky to the earth seemed to stitch together every being. The older trees had a calmer energy, the new trees sputtered with more. The animals with their erratic energy were calmed by the coolness of the air.

I got up, and the forest hummed with a slight increase of energy. I looked around. The rain still pattered down; a faint gust blew through the trees whispering my name. _Esmerelda,_ it sighed, _Esmerelda, I will show you._

I spun slowly in a circle. "Which one will show me?" I asked softly, my voice barely audible. I turned slower, listening. The humming increased; when I looked at an ancient pine, the humming slowed. This was the one. I walked forward and placed my hands on the lined trunk. Images flooded my mind.

I saw myself half on Miracle's back as he galloped through the trees. As I slipped off he slowed to a stop and stood near me. I saw my body lie there and an occasional spasm rocket through me. I saw the rain begin to fall, and then my body was still. The rain kept falling. Then I saw my body relax, and a tattered, silvery, feather-like thing drew itself out of me.

_Your soul,_ the tree told me. I continued to watch as a whole assortment of different feathery silver souls floated towards mine. Pieces were exchanged between my soul and the others that had floated in. _Their souls_, the tree muttered and flashed pictures of millions of plants, animals, and insects, every living and nonliving thing.

The tree continued to show me what had happened while I was unconscious. My soul was now complete, strong and bright, and bigger than before. It made its way back into my heart. And I saw myself wake up; I was different from when I had fallen here. My hair was still the shoulder-length wavy black. My skin was still the colour of polished ivory. I was still the same height and build. But my eyes, they were different; they shone with a bright intensity. They where no longer a dark gold, now they were an almost metallic grey-green. I looked both soft and dangerous at the same time.

I backed away from the tree, "Thank you, that was… beautiful," I murmured. The tree groaned in reply, and I understood it. The earth still hummed at the sky and the sky back to the earth. I understood these old friends also.

"We should go Miracle, they will probably be worried," I said softly.

_Yes, Moonie and Jitterbug had to basically trample Jill and Lily to keep them from coming after you. They had to distract the two with Edward and Carlisle and some others…_ Miracle replied.

I laughed; Miracle joined in. Everything seemed fine—I knew the limitations of my powers now, Miracle was ok, and no one could harm me. Life was bliss for the trip home; we cantered through the trees without the haste we had on our journey out here.

I saw the house come up in front of us and Jill and Lily come running out. Moonie and Jitterbug followed. I slid off of Miracle, more graceful then when I had tumbled in the forest.

"Esmerelda! Thank god you're ok! We were so worried! What was up?" Jill and Lily asked at the same time.

I told them about riding into the forest and passing out and of having stronger powers, but I left out the part about the tree and the details of when I woke up. That was for me alone, my memories, for me to hold; telling them would only mar them.

"Wow, that's amazing Elda!" Jill said using my pet name.

"We have loads to tell you about the meeting that went on while you were gone; we got more details about the attacks!" Lily said ecstatically.

I leaned in, I wanted to learn about this; I could finally do something that could help people, that could possibly conquer my fears.


	14. Glimpse

**Vampire Knights**

(A/N: Hey guyz, its me, Kathy!! I have three things for you readers out there… 1. This chapter is a clip from what our villains are doing, just FYI because this chapter is written in 3rd person… 2. I changed Esmerelda's hair from long wavy black hair in chapter 2 to short brown sort-of spiky hair… and 3. Please review? Anything is fine… even flames… but we'd rather have constructive criticism… thanks for reviewing! (That's a hint))

(A/N: I wanna put in an author's note too!! Okay, QPL here, saying that I'm putting in an author's note because I feel like it. So THERE. Uhm….Okay so there's not really anything I wanted to say. Sue me. But I wanted to put in an author's note, so I did. Yay me!! OH the leprechauns say they want you to review. Listen, they made a song, just for you guys. AHEM. Here goes… R-E-V-I-E-W! R-E-V-I-E-W! R-E-V-I-E-W! And Bingo was his name-O!! I know, they're so brilliant. But don't forget to REVIEW, even if it's just to comment on my mad singing skills.)

Chapter 13: Glimpse

A large, black, dog-like creature stood next to an Irish woman with jet black hair and sharp red eyes. They stood on a cliff overlooking the sea; the wind whipped her hair about her face. A platinum blonde man walked up to her.

"Morrigan," he said in a low voice.

"Scorpius," she replied in the same low tone, "Are we ready?"

"Yes; we were never here," he took her hand as he said this, and reached over to the hell-hound's head and pulled it over. "Come on, Max."

The three of them disintegrated into thin air, leaving Dublin in utter chaos. A corner of Moscow was still in a frenzied panic; a town in South Africa was burning to the ground. The few survivors in an Australian city searched for anyone left in the smoldering ruin, but to no avail. The police were just arriving at the hectic scene in Mississauga, Canada.

Bodies littered the streets drained of blood. Still more were strewn about with the faces torn to shreds, and others stared up at the sky with blank expressions as they began to rot too early. What was behind this? Newborns with some sort of monster? Was it some sort of organization, how else would five cities been attacked all within seconds of eachother?

A few miles north of the Cullen's house the two vampires and the hell-hound materialized. Scorpius strode up to the door of a small house. He opened it with ease. Morrigan looked behind them, scanning the trees, scenting the air. Her posture relaxed and she too went inside, followed closely by the massive creature, Max.

The couple quickly changed their clothes to rid themselves from the stench of burning and death. As they turned to leave, Max whined thinking he would not be in on another attack.

"No, Max, not this time," Scorpius said to the hound. He shut the door and the pair started running.

They looped around the house once. Then Scorpius took Morrigan's hand and they disappeared. The pair reappeared a half a mile away from the Cullen's house; they began to run again. As they neared the house, they slowed down.

"Carlisle!" Scorpius called out to the blonde man in front of the modern house.

"Scorpius! Morrigan! I'm glad you could come," Carlisle greeted them, "Come, the meeting has just begun. I assume you two have heard of the attacks?"

"Oh, yes we have, it sounds terrible! Whatever could be behind it?" Morrigan asked with false concern in her voice.

"Whatever it is, it must be able to move fast with all of those attacks within seconds of each other," Scorpius said with the same artificial concern.

"Yes," Carlisle answered, buying into their charade. "That is what we are going to discuss and hopefully come up with a plan of action."

"Yes, the sooner we abolish this threat the better," Morrigan declared. Scorpius nodded his consent and the pair followed Carlisle inside concealing their thoughts so that unwanted visitors would fall into their trap as well.


	15. Rubber Chicken

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 14: Rubber Chicken

Jitterbug's PoV

"Yes, we need to abolish this threat immediately," I heard a concerned voice say. It was an attractive soprano, but something in the tone made it sound shrill. I flicked my ears impatiently, annoyed by the tinkling undertone.

Carlisle entered the house, followed by two unfamiliar vampires. The woman, whose voice I obviously heard, was slender, with piercing red eyes and shiny black hair curling around her shoulders. I suppose she could have been considered pretty, but her expression ruined the picture for me. Her face was thick with concern, to the point where it was sickening. But despite the apparent sincerity of her frown, she still managed to look as if she smelled something unpleasant.

The man was taller, but with the same red eyes and lean appearance. His hair was white-blonde, matching his skin tone (or lack of) almost perfectly. And though their expressions were identical, her eyes were mocking while his stayed blank. It was as if there was no thought inside his head.

Half a second after I saw the couple, I saw _it._

It appeared to be a large black dog, but it had pulsing red eyes. It had a lean body much like that of a greyhound; the dog was blacker than black and its fur glossy. Its narrow snout concealed a row of stark-white razor-sharp teeth, from its paws stretched long dagger like claws. The beast stood next to the male, its shoulders reached his hips. The legs of this thing made up at least half of its height.

I stiffened, automatically stepping in front of Lily. Out of the corner of my eye I observed similar reactions from Miracle and Moonie, but that was irrelevant. What mattered, at that moment, was the crazy light in Lily's eyes.

She patted my neck absently, and walked carefully up to the…_thing_, her arm outstretched.

"Hey puppy puppy," she crooned. "Who's a good puppy? Who's a good puppy? You are!"

_Lily!_

She turned to grin at me. "Relax Bugman. It's a puppy. Look how cute he is!"

I was about to protest when Esmerelda spoke. "Actually Lily, that's a hellhound. I wouldn't touch it if I were you."

Lily pouted, her bangs falling down to cover one eye. I took the opportunity to dart out and wrap my neck around her waist, pulling her back to the group. I felt better the second I was between her and that thing, but not totally appeased.

It was then that I noticed the pair watching me, their bright eyes full of suspicion. I was struck again by the similarity in their expressions, and by the curious blankness in the eyes of the male.

"What is _that_?" he asked, making no attempt to conceal the disgust in his voice.

All three girls tensed, crossing their arms at exactly the same moment. A low growl slipped through Moonie's teeth.

"It's a pony."

"Duh."

"What else would it be?"

"A rubber chicken."

"Obviously."

"And I thought vampires were smart."

"Obviously not."

"I'm ashamed to be a fangirl."

"Almost."

"Yeah, almost."

"I told you guys Harry Potter is better."

"Shut up."

They fell silent, Esmerelda with a smug smile on her face—she loved any excuse to prove how Harry Potter was better than _Twilight._

"It is very fast, correct?" inquired the female, her eyes narrowed in calculation.

"It certainly pulled her out of the way fast enough," replied the man.

"Fast enough to be making the attacks, Scorpius?"

"Yes, Morrigan, I believe it could."

"And with newborns controlling them. Tsk tsk."

"Very dangerous."

"Actually," interrupted Carlisle, "these are our friends. They are remarkably controlled, and Alice will see if they slip."

Carlisle was amazing. He took a group of vampires about to rip each other to shreds, and completely diffused the hostility. Or maybe not completely, judging from the looks we were receiving from Morrigan, but at least the girls were calmer. Or maybe the whole thing was Jasper's doing.

Carlisle artfully guided everyone over to the couches, beginning the discussion. I stretched by neck over the loveseat Lily, Jill, and Esmerelda were occupying, resting my nose on Lily's shoulder. She patted it absently, as everyone wondered who could be behind the attacks.

I, however, had more pressing matters to attend to. I needed to talk to Moonie and Miracle, and it wasn't strictly necessary for us to listen. The girls would fill us in later.

_So what do you two think of them?_

_I don't like them,_ Moon answered immediately.

_Nor do I,_ added Miracle. _There's something odd about them. _

_And that _thing_ that's with them. _All three of us shuddered internally. _It's hideous. _

_So we've established that there's something wrong with them,_ I stated, eager to draw the conversation from the "puppy." _But I can't put my hoof on exactly _what.

_Have you noticed how similar their expressions are? _Miracle asked.

_Almost like they're of one mind,_ mused Moonie. _Couples must be closer than we originally thought. _

_No, _I told them, the thoughts coming more slowly as I hesitated to put the bizarre void in the male's eyes into words. _They're not exactly the same. The girl is malicious, but the man is more…empty._

_I, too, saw this. It's not like he's unintelligent, it's more…_Miracle trailed off, unable to find adequate articulation for the curious emptiness in the eyes of Scorpius.

_But aside from that, and the obvious gender differences, they could be the same person._

_Moon, say that again, _I told him, an idea forming.

I could almost hear his eyes widening. _The same person,_ he whispered.

_You don't think she's _controlling _him, do you?_ Miracle asked.

_It's possible. _

_Best explanation we've got. _

_Wow. _

_I know. _

_Which means…_

_Oh no. _

_I know. _

_But does Carlisle?_

_We'll have to ask him. This is important. _

_Definitely. _

_The only problem is…why?_

_I'm not sure. Humans can be quite strange. _

_And vampirism intensifies everything. _

_Why hasn't she told anyone about this?_

_She doesn't want anyone to think badly of her for it. _

_People are silly. _

_Unless she has another motive. _

_Doubtful. You know how the girls are always worrying about what people will think. And from what they say, they're not even that bad about it. _

_But why _him._ What's so special about him?_

_She loves him?_

Moonie snorted. _It doesn't look like she's capable of love. What a witch. _

_So she must have some use for him. _

_Maybe he's gifted? We should ask the Cullens. _

_But if she's keeping hers quiet, why would she advertise his?_

_What would they even have to keep quiet about?_

_Maybe they're hiding it from the…_I paused, searching through fuzzy memories for the word Lily had used. _Volturi, I think. Whoever the vampire police are. _

_Yes, Esmerelda always said that they coveted strong talents. _

_I hope you guys are right. _

_It's the best we've got right now. I hope they leave soon. _

_I second that. _

_I third it. If that makes any sense. _

_It doesn't._

_Thanks. _


	16. Take a Hike

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 15: Take a Hike

Jill's PoV

My eyes scanned across the elegant living room. Carlisle was deep in conversation with Morrigan about the attacks. Scorpius sat pensively in a chair.

"The attacks were extremely fast; it must have been a newborn," Morrigan uttered.

"Maybe, but I highly doubt that; a newborn wouldn't have been able to tear away from the smell of blood. It has to be something else…" Carlisle eyed the hellhound nervously.

"Yes, true." Morrigan shifted in her chair.

"I think it's necessary to call in some old friends, since the attacks are coming closer… we need to have this situation under control before more civilians are killed." Carlisle remarked.

Morrigan nodded, "I agree. I think it's better that we don't have the Volturi knocking on our front door."

"That would probably make matters worse. But on the other hand they may be able to—"

"—help? I highly doubt that…" Morrigan snapped.

"Well," Carlisle said, trying to ignore her anger, "they must know already, but we won't call upon their services unless the situation gets out of hand."

Morrigan half smiled and gazed out the window.

As I followed her eyes, I realized that the sun was slowly going down behind the horizon.

"Wow," I whispered. The whole day had gone by so fast.

I slowly stood up and walked outside onto the porch. What a view. The sky was a beautiful pastel of softly painted colors. I smiled and started to walk down the steps when someone stopped me short. I turned sluggishly…

"Lily, I sorta need to—" I stopped.

Edward grinned. "I didn't realize that I seemed so effeminate to you."

"Oh sorry…" I awkwardly moved down a step, "I was just about to go for a walk…"

"I'll join you." Edward smiled and flawlessly glided down the stairs.

I followed him to a trail near the house. We silently hiked a short distance until we came to a field facing a small stream.

"Alright Jill, drop the façade," Edward said. "Explain."

"What?" I asked. I had no clue what he was talking about.

"I know that you have a gift, Jill."

Click. Oh crap. He knows. This is bad…

"No it isn't." Edward threw a pebble into the stream, "So you can stop and rewind time. Why are you being so secretive about it?"

I looked at the ground and tried to clear my head of everything. There was no way he was getting this out of me. My gift, my secret; bottom line.

"Jill, come on. I promise I won't tell Lily and Esmerelda if that's what your worried about." Edward grinned his crooked smile. Damn it.

"Fine," I grumbled. "Well, Lily and Esmerelda love being vampires. They think it's amazing. I, on the other hand—"

"—hate it and think it's ruined the rest of your life?" Edward cut in.

"Yes, _partially_; but let me finish the rest of the story, mind-reader."

Edward smiled and gestured for me to continue.

"The only problem I have is that _because_ I can stop and rewind time, I can…"

"…change the past so that this never would have happened." Edward finished.

"Yes," I whispered. I felt so guilty. I could change time and I was using it for my own personal gain, instead of using it to help other people.

"Jill, you shouldn't feel guilty. If I was in your position, I would feel the exact same way. Basically, for now, it's up to you. Just do what _you _think is best." Edward sat down next to me. "You'll be fine. You're smart."

"Haha, sure." I smiled and started to laugh. "Thanks… you know, for the 'counseling' and all."

"Anytime," Edward replied.

We quickly arrived back at the house just before the sun disappeared below the horizon. I heard high-pitched squeals and giggles coming from the Cullens' house. _Must be Lily,_ I thought. We arrived at the porch and Edward strode up the steps.

"Hey, Edward?" I called.

"Yes, Jill," he smiled. Obviously, he already knew what I was about to say.

"I think I like my life as it is. I'm gonna tough it out." We both started to laugh as we walked through the front door.

"I knew you were smart," he replied. And with that, Edward went upstairs to find Bella.

I grinned way too wide. Lily started to squeal.

"JILL!! Oh my GOSH!! What did you do with him?!" Esmerelda rolled her eyes, while Lily bounced off the walls.

"Sorry. You'll have to ask Edward about that one." I chuckled and turned around as I watched Lily sprint upstairs after him. I knew Edward would never tell.


	17. Bumoocle

**Vampire Knights**

(A/N: sorry for the wait, school happened please review. One word is fine too! Will update soon we hope =D)

Chapter 16: Bumoocle

Moonie's PoV

Rolling in dirt—it's actually fun. Out of all the things I had lost when becoming a vampire, this was one thing I could still do. Obviously, eating hay was out of the question; so, Miracle, JB, and I relaxed in the meadow by the Cullen's residence while Jill, Esmerelda, and Lily were in the house.

_That Scorpius-guy is a complete psychopath,_ Miracle snorted.

_Yeah, he practically broke Esmerelda, _Jitterbug commented as he dove into the tall grass.

I craned my neck to look at Miracle. _He seems like he's being controlled or something; did you see how Morrigan was staring at him?_

_Yeah, it was a little weird…_ Miracle peeked at one of the windows that Morrigan was sitting by.

I continued to roll in the dirt, replaying the episode in my head. Something didn't fit right.

_Did the Cullen's say they were allies with them?_ I asked.

Jitterbug snorted. _Yep, but I sure as hell wouldn't call them allies; more like creeps._

_We need to figure out what their purpose for 'helping' the Cullens really is. I don't want people to start getting hurt._ Miracle turned his ears back. _Oh, the girls are coming for us._

I stood up and trotted over to Jill.

_What's going on? _

"Nothing, I just thought we should get you before the storm comes." she pointed to the dark, charcoal clouds looming over the forest.

_You know, Jill, I don't think a little _water_ is going to hurt us. I mean, after all we _are_ vampires_.

Jill rolled her eyes. "Moon, come on. They said it's supposed to be thirty degrees. You really want to stand out here and get snowed on?"

Snow?

"Uggg. Nevermind Moon. It's okay," she sighed and gave me a hug. "I'll be inside."

I watched her run into the house with the others. It seemed like Jill wanted me to come, but I decided to leave her to herself. What harm could come from a little bad weather?

Jitterbug's PoV

I watched Jill run back inside with the other girls, smiling inwardly as Lily waved to me. I flicked my ears in her direction before returning my attention to the wonderful mixture of grass and dirt in front of me. I sank to my knees and rolled, sighing in contentment as I was coated with a healthy layer of dirt.

_Do you know what snow is?_ Moonie asked me.

_Nope. _I answered. _I know that Lily hates it, though. And that it doesn't grow in southern California. _

_It's alive? _Miracle questioned me, since I was obviously the expert, having heard the word once in my life. It was more than the others could say.

I shrugged in answer. _Why not? _

_But then how is it connected to the storm? Jill made it sound like it was a type of weather. _

_Then maybe it's not alive; I don't know. I just remember Lily ranting to me about how awful it is. _

_Then maybe we should go inside, if it's as bad as she insists. _

Miracle snorted. _She and Jill are always overreacting. Besides, did she say _why_ it was so heinous? _

_No…_

_Then it's settled. Why should we interrupt a good, healthy roll for a little bit of weather? _

I consented, sighing again as the dirt worked its way into my fur. Life really didn't get much better than this. I could feel the others agreement to my silent statement.

_Oh. My. God. What is __**that**__? _Moonie asked, staring up at the darkening sky.

Miracle and I glanced up automatically, not really expecting to see anything out of the ordinary. Moon had always seen things others didn't, and had interpreted them to be signs that something horrific would happen. But this time, I couldn't argue with the doomsday assumption that radiated from every hair of his being.

The sky was falling.

Little pieces of sky were flaking off and falling to earth, beginning to coat the ground in a chilly blanket. Panic rocketed through our minds, but nobody seemed to be able to bring himself to move. We just stared as the end of the world approached. Surely the weight of the entire sky would eventually crush us.

But something seemed off. The sky was falling, that was unbearably clear. But I'd always thought the sky was blue, and the falling pieces were a pure, unblemished white. I'd never really considered the nature of the sky before, but something was definitely different from what I'd always assumed. If the sky was white, where did the blue come from?

And then, a piece of sky landed on my nose.

I jerked back, afraid that the tiny piece would crush me. The movement broke the spell we were under, and the three of us scrambled to our feet. We took off running, galloping as fast as we could. We had to warn the girls. The sky was falling.

Lily's PoV

"Oh my God, Esmerelda. Get your mind out of the gutter!" I exclaimed while trying to hold back the flood of giggles I could feel coming. Esmerelda had just twisted another perfectly reasonable statement into a tacky, hilarious, that's-what-she-said joke. That girl had serious problems.

"But if not for the gutter, where would it live?" she asked innocently, obviously pleased with herself.

"Ugh. Now that's all she's going to be able to say for the rest of the day," groaned Jill, attempting to hide her smile behind her hand.

"No!" I shrieked, a little louder than I'd intended. "I refuse to forfeit the rest of the day to that's-what-she-said jokes. We need to distract her."

"Hmmm…"

"Nothing can distract my mind from the beauty of the gutter," Esmerelda smirked.

"Got it!" Jill grinned.

"That's what she said."

"Esmerelda! That wasn't even a good one."

"Like that's ever stopped her before."

"Whatever," Jill huffed. "Anyway, my brilliant plan for distraction is to…" She paused dramatically, a smile dancing across her face. "Wrestle with Emmett! We can so totally beat him."

"Of course," I laughed, excited at the prospect. "The guy's too egotistical to refuse us three-on-one. We'll kick butt!"

"Fine. Maybe Emmett will appreciate my unique brand of humor."

My retort was cut off by Bug, Mooners, and Miracle galloping towards the house. Terror consumed their minds, cutting off coherent thought and leaving only the primary instinct that governs all creatures—fight or flight. The ponies had obviously chosen flight.

"Bug, what's wrong?" I asked, just as Jill and Esmerelda asked the same of their respective ponies. It ended up sounding a little bit like 'bumoocle', but I didn't have time to laugh at the word we created. I had to know what was happening.

But of course, it wasn't that simple. Bug was scared out of his mind, literally. It took the three of us a good twenty minutes to calm them down enough to understand the situation. By that time, the rest of the Cullens had arrived, save for Edward and Bella, who were off hunting. Damn. It would've been nice if Edward could tell us what they were thinking.

_The sky is falling, _they thought in unison, after I had exhausted every method of calming I could think of.

The sky is falling? The sky couldn't fall—it was just a space, not a concrete thing that could be broken into pieces and dropped. I was confused for the tiniest fraction of a second, for a length of time too impossibly small to measure. And then I understood.

It was _snowing. _Of course Bug would assume the sky was falling. Born and bred in California, the land of beaches and hot guys (yeah, I wish), he had never had the displeasure to see snow. Although I supposed it wouldn't be as bad as a vampire, now that the cold and wet didn't affect me.

Jill and Esmerelda figured it out at the same time as me. We laughed together; it was a giddy, breathy sound that came from humor and relief. I hugged Jitterbug tightly, grinning as Esmerelda explained.

"That's snow," she managed to choke out between fits of giggles.

I felt Bug's confusion, relief, and chagrin as he realized the misunderstanding.

_Oh. Really?_

"Yep. Want to go make a snowman?"

_Snowman?_

"Yeah, it'll be awesome. Let's go make a snowman."


	18. From a Dream

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 17: From a Dream

Lily's PoV

1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3. I closed my eyes in contentment, breaking softly at my lower back so I could follow the motion of Bug's canter. The gentle rocking motion, accented by the nearly-silent hoof beats, lulled me into a state of semi-consciousness—it was the closest I had been to sleep since I was turned. Sure, Bug and I had cantered together before, but not like this. In California there had always been an edge to the third beat of his canter, making the motion uneven with the stress of not knowing if we were being pursued. 1-2-**3**, 1-2-**3**, rather than an even pace; it was the gait of the hunted.

Now we were alone. It was just me, and Bug, and the dripping green forest, all blending seamlessly into a kind of music. Three beats to a measure, accompanied by a soft whooshing of air in the background, the thumping of tiny heartbeats, and whatever sounds were made by little feet scrambling to escape the dual predators that flew past them. Heaven.

But unless we wanted to hunt up in northern Canada, the soothing rhythm had to end. I sat up a little straighter and Bug slowed to a walk, as we communicated in the wordless language that had existed even in the mundane, human world. He nuzzled my shirt as I dismounted, giggling softly at the wet earth squishing between my bare toes.

_Come find me when you're done. _

"See you later, Bugman. Love you."

_Love you too. _

He turned and disappeared into the forest, leaving me to find my prey. I stared wistfully for a moment, already missing him, but the burning in my throat quickly became the number one priority. I needed to hunt.

I let my senses roam outward, searching for a warm scent among the wet, green maze. My ears picked up on a heartbeat, thudding steadily about a mile west from me; it sounded big, probably carnivorous. Excellent.

The trees zoomed past me with flawless clarity, as each vein in each leaf was permanently etched in my perfect memory. I tasted mountain lion on the breeze, and dove for the tantalizing scent without a second thought. The relief was instantaneous as the liquid hit my throat, soothing it better than chamomile tea ever had done to my human throat.

Almost without thinking, I held the big cat's tearing claws out of the way, protecting the brand new clothes Alice had forced me into. I would have felt awful if they were ruined, although I knew the Cullens had more than enough money to spare. But the idea was so temping with this shirt…

My new shirt (or one of them) was ridiculous, dark purple and see-through. It was thin and blouse-y, and fit snugly over the tiny black camisole underneath. I had protested the frills vehemently, but as Alice had pointed out, at least it wasn't pink. And she had let me wear jeans, which was always a plus.

I finished off the lion, letting it fall on the moss with a muted thud. Instead of running off immediately like I knew I should have, I stared down at the carcass.

The guilt came instantly, washing over me in thick, sickening waves. I stared down at the once-proud hunter, marveling at the sinuous cords of muscle and vicious claws. My hands looked like a child's doll as they stroked the massive head, completely of their own accord. So beautiful, so dangerous, and so completely and utterly dead. I wondered bitterly which one of us I was describing.

The regret wasn't there, though. There was guilt, yes, disgust, yes, and yes, grief. But I loved the other aspects of what I had become far too much to dwell on those that were less…desirable. I may have been a monster, but I sure loved it.

My ears picked it up first, but the scent followed soon after. Whispering footfalls, an icy sweetness on my tongue, and that odd sixth sense that picked up on other predators signaled that more of my kind were approaching. Two, actually, and judging from their line of travel, they knew I was here. I stood up warily, hoping they were friendly.

Two boys slid through the ferns; they stopped in front of me, palms up in a gesture of peace.

Oh. My. Freaking. God.

I knew there were two boys in front of me; I knew what they both looked like and I knew they were both watching me. But I only really saw one of them, and _damn_ was he gorgeous.

Lean and muscled, taller than me, but not so tall that I'd feel like a dwarf (which I probably was). Thick black hair that just _begged_ me to run my hands through it and push it out of his wide, golden eyes. Young, boyish features (about 16, maybe?) with a mouth that looked like it was smiling, even when he was clearly being cautious around a strange vampire. And he was _looking at me._

Oh wait, they both were. They were waiting to see if I was friendly or not. Right. I mentally chastised myself for ogling a total stranger; it wasn't polite, no matter how gorgeous he was. Which was pretty freaking gorgeous…

No. Focus. They want you to say something.

"Um, hi. I'm Lily," I told them, waving halfheartedly. _Wow Lily, way to shock him with your language skills. _

The grin that had been hovering on the edge of his lips broke through, momentarily stunning me with its intensity. "I'm Daniel, and this is Jesse," he answered me, stepping forward with his hand outstretched.

Oh my god, I get to shake his hand.

Wait, did I really just think that?

I'm acting like a 12-year-old. Keep it together, Lily…

"It's nice to meet you," I replied, giving him the conventional answer rather than embarrassing myself by trying to say something more elaborate. I brought my hand up to meet his, undoubtedly grinning like an idiot the second our hands touched.

It was…indescribable. His skin was smooth and warm as it slid onto mine, and his long fingers wound all the way around my hand and overlapped on the other side. His grip was firm but not painful, although I had a feeling he could squish my fingers as hard as he could and I still wouldn't care. I never wanted him to let go.

I held on longer than was strictly necessary. Oops. But hey, he'd seemed reluctant to let go as well. Or maybe that was my brain kicking into overdrive, fantasy mode. Whatever.

"As it is _very_ nice to meet you as well." Holy crap, was I imagining the emphasis he put on 'very'? Gosh, I must be dreaming. I'm going to wake up and find out that I'm still human, and that I have some giant history project due tomorrow that I haven't done. I'll be up until 1 in the morning working on it, and then I'll have to get up at 6 to go to choir, and I'll fall asleep in biology. Crap. Not cool.

Although I might as well enjoy it while it lasts. This is unquestionably the best hot vampire guy I've ever dreamed up.

"So, is there any reason in particular why you guys are in this area?" There. That's a coherent, entirely respectable thing to ask him. I gave myself a mental pat on the back in celebration.

"We're actually here at the request of Carlisle Cullen. Do you know where he lives?"

"Yes," interjected the other one, Jesse I think his name was. "Darling Dannie here got us lost. We were hoping you could show us the way."

"Dannie?" I giggled, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

"Dan," he answered dryly. "And I don't believe I'm entirely to blame for our predicament." He glared pointedly at Jesse, who shrugged and grinned at him.

"Well Dan-not-Dannie, you're in luck. My friends and I are staying at the Cullens' house right now, and I would be happy to show you the way. I just have to find Bug first."

"Your friend?"

"Something like that," I replied, smiling at the thought of his reaction to the world's first vampire pony. "I'll be right back."

I turned and launched myself into the air, shifting into the hawk form that was my favorite. I glanced quickly at Dan's shocked expression before I flew off in search of Bug. Birds had a much better view of things, and he was undoubtedly miles away by now.

And there he was, a tiny flash of chocolate-y fur amidst the endless sea of green. I dove after him, spiraling hundreds of feet towards the earth before pulling up just in time. I perched lightly on his withers before relaying the entire encounter with Dan via our mental connection.

_Good, more people. Maybe they can help us get to the bottom of this. _

I returned to my original form, remembering to envision myself exactly as I was, ridiculous blouse included. Forgetting to bring my clothes back was the _last_ thing I needed right now.

We followed the approximate path towards the boys by using my bird's-eye-view memories, and then used their scent to find the precise location. I felt Bug mentally brace himself for their reaction to him, and I rubbed a calming hand on his neck. I knew they would love him. How could anyone not?

"We're back," I announced as Bug stepped delicately over the ferns that covered the ground. "Guys, this is Jitterbug. Bug, meet Dan and Jesse."

"Your friend is a horse?"

_Obviously,_ Bug told him. I could feel the mental eye roll that accompanied it.

"It _talks_?"

I frowned. "Yes, he talks. He's very intelligent, and is my best friend in the whole world. I expect you all to be great friends. Anyone who isn't okay with Bug can leave."

"No, he's fine. We're just…surprised."

"Yeah, and what are you?" Jesse piped up. "Some kind of half-bird-half-girl thing?"

"Shapeshifter," I laughed, amused by his incredulous stare. I suppose Bug and I did make quite the pair. "I can turn into anything I feel like."

To prove my point, I slid lightly to the ground and let my bones stretch into the longer ones of the mountain lion I had polished off earlier. Two sets of honey colored eyes grew wider as I pulled my lips back, exposing a set of gleaming teeth.

_Stop showing off and let's get these two to Carlisle. Maybe they have some insight into the mystery. _

I slid back into myself and pouted at Bug. "Fine, be that way. Fun-sucker." I tugged on his ears and kissed his nose before jumping back on. "Coming, boys?"

"Uh, yeah." They still sounded slightly dazed. Hmmm. Note to self: turning into giant cats freaks people out. Wonder why.

"Go slow Bug, or they won't be able to keep up," I reminded him.

_Of course._

He picked up an easy trot, matching his pace to that of the dazzling creature beside us and his friend. I smiled at the gorgeous one, and he returned it with just a little bit of awe in his eyes. Or maybe that was my imagination again. I didn't really care.

I really, really hoped I wouldn't wake up from this dream.


	19. Bronze

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 18: Bronze

Jill's PoV

I trudged slowly down the stairs. Morrigan jerked her head up to look at me; she and Carlisle seemed to be on the edge of a deep discussion. I quickly skittered through the living room and hovered by Esmerelda, sitting quietly on the front porch.

"What's up?"

Esmerelda looked at me with a sarcastic grin, "Oh, they're just continually talking about the danger we're all in. Nothing new."

"Haha, nice Es. By the way, do you know where Lily went?"

"She went hunting a few hours ago. She'll most likely be back any minute."

"Okay." I slumped into a quaint little wicker chair residing next to Esmerelda. I closed my eyes and hummed to myself for a while. Moonie and Miracle lounged in the grass, rolling with ease. It seemed like the day was dragging on so slowly…

"OH. MY. GOD. Look what the cat drug in…" Esmerelda slapped me out of my peaceful state.

"Ow! What the…" I suddenly understood the rude awakening.

There was Lily cantering on J.B. with two UTTERLY GORGEOUS guys running alongside her. The first was admiringly staring straight at Lily; nearly smacking into trees and such just to pay attention to her. The second was well… _breathtaking_. I was seriously was reconsidering the whole, "Edward-is-the-most-sexy-person-alive" thing.

He was about 5'6 with short brown hair. His body moved with the most flattering poise. He was completely pale, no doubt; however, the sun seemed to grace his skin with a bronze glow. Not only was he a _god_ in disguise, but he sparkled like a diamond as well. I almost collapsed.

So, as they were coming closer, I tried to go out to meet Lily. Obviously, I wanted to be acquainted with her new friends, so I rushed down the stairs maybe a little too fast…

Supposedly, vampires are invincible to the whole "klutz" persona, with Bella as a prime example. I don't think that applies to me.

Naturally, I tripped down the stairs and soared headfirst towards the concrete.

_I am going to look like such an idiot,_ I thought in mid-air. Another terrific moment in my life to add to the history books. Suddenly, though, I was caught by an invisible force, sweeping me off my feet.

"Uhhhh…" I stared into his warm hazel eyes.

"Hi," he murmured. A small smile crept across my face. He gently put me on my feet.

"Jill, this is Jesse," Lily chuckled. Esmerelda snickered next to me. Honestly, I didn't even care. Jesse's eyes were way too important at the moment.

Now that I could clearly see his face, I literally gasped in amazement. He had the perfect eyes, a topaz-hazel with a sunflower around the pupil. His face was calm, gentle, and _extremely_ inviting. Jesse had pale rose lips, which nicely accompanied his sparkling smile. Everything about him was perfect.

The other boy coughed, "Uh, Jesse I think you can let go of her now…" I had just realized he was still holding me.

"Sorry…" he slowly released his grasp around my waist and awkwardly stood next to his friend.

"Oh…um, it's fine…" I whispered. _It's fine?_ Wow, I really have to work on my responses…

Lily giggled, "And this is Daniel. They're here to see Carlisle. Do you know where he is?"

"In the living room," Es responded for me. "This way…"

Lily stayed behind while the boys followed Esmerelda into the house.

I turned to Lily, "Oh. My. God. WHO ARE THEY?" I shrieked. Although they probably heard me, I ignored that fact at the moment. I needed details—pronto.

Lily laughed, "I know,_ right_? They are like…well, basically, using the word 'wow' would be an understatement."

"Let me guess… you found them while hunting. Daniel seemed to be into you, so you took the liberty of striking up a conversation; and conveniently, both of them were looking for Carlisle. Am I right?"

Lily gave me a bubbly smile, "Yep. And don't give me that look, Jill. You were most definitely checking out Jesse".

I beamed in contentment. "He is so… I seriously can't put it into words".

"I agree," Lily turned towards the living room and smiled. "They're both 'dazzling'. I think Daniel _is_ better, though".

We both laughed hysterically. Moonie snorted with disgust, while Bug just rolled his eyes. Silly, jealous horse. Lily and I went into the house to join the others.


	20. No Mercy

**The Vampire Knights**

(A/N: Hey guys! It's Kathy and just letting you know that I'm really not a psychopath, and i just got this idea randomly... so I'm really sane and don't really think what my character does... sorry for the delay in updating.. finals = bad... Sorry if you like Renesmee, i think she's dumb... so yeah I'll take any flames... or praise.. don't care... =D REVIEW PLEASE!!!!! FLAMES=OK!!!!!!!!!!!)

Chapter 19: No Mercy

Esmerelda's POV

"Sooo hot, OMG!" Jill squealed still obsessing over the two guys. I guess you could call them hot, but not my type, I guess. I had zoned out on their conversation, looking at the dark clouds hoping for rain or something… I liked rain.

"But Es is on my side," Lily said pulling me over next to her. "She thinks that Dan is hotter."

"NO!" Jill yelled tugging on my other arm, attempting to pull me over to her. "She thinks Jesse is hotter!"

"Can I NOT be a human-vampire-whatever tug-of-war rope?" I demanded shaking them off, "Well sorry to disappoint, but I must be off. Miracle and I have a lunch with a Mr. Prey; we will be back."

"Haha, want some company?" Jill asked, itching to be on her horse.

"Fine, come on." I mounted my horse, "Lils, you coming too?"

"No, I'm going to get to know Dan a bit better, talk to Carlisle, and stuff." I rolled my eyes at the giant, dopey grin that had appeared on her face the second she mentioned Dan.

We cantered off into the trees going to find a nice hunting place; Jill was still going on about Huffy or Fluffy or whatever his name was. I slowed Miracle, I smelled something; something odd. Jill slowed too, still babbling something about taking off his shirt.

"Oh, that's just _wrong_!" I exclaimed. It-he-she-they were lip-locked and… just ew.

"What I'm _sure_ he has a hot body!" Jill said excitedly.

"No, not you, _that_," I gestured to the grossness. "Jacob is like fifty thousand years older than her!"

"No, he's only like-" Jill started.

"I don't care! It's still gross and Renesmee is a fugly bitch and has a retarded name!" Jill looked like she had just stuck her finger in a high voltage plug.

"Don't talk about Nessie that way!" Jacob said defensively, taking a step toward us growling like a… well, dog. His hands also began to shake, oh wow! I'm scared, _not._

"I can talk any goddamn way I feel like!" I shouted; in the distance thunder rumbled in the clouds. "Anyway, I'm leaving. I need to be alone."

Jacob was still furious, but didn't anyone get it? You love someone to death and they 'love' you back, or so you think. And then one day out of the blue 'Oops, sorry don't like you anymore.' And bam, your heart has been shredded into a thousand million pieces which he uses to stuff the heart-shaped pillow- that you made for him- and gives it to his new girlfriend.

They are all the same, you give him your heart and they eat it like a steak, crap it out, flush it, and then forget it.

I turned Miracle harshly and we galloped off towards the nearest town. After we widened the gap between us and them, I began thinking of what I should hunt today: mountain lion, grizzly bear, or wolf? I stopped Miracle, how could I have been so stupid?! Every animal has something above it in the food chain—the lions eat the surplus of deer, rabbits and other surpluses of herbivores, yet there is nothing to feed on the lions; therefore there are a small number of lions! Humans eat nearly everything, nothing eats them, and there is a surplus of them. The number of vampires is few; the only logical thing for us to eat would be them! Why should we make these animals hurry along the road of extinction when an easier prey is right at our doorstep?

Killing an animal would hurt me as well, doing more damage than help me. I could take energy from the trees, but that would age them so much; they have voices of their own.

_I don't know Es, this sounds kind of risky. Won't everyone else notice?_ Miracle wondered.

"Alas, my sweet, I have a magnificent plan! You see animals are always on the look out for a free meal, and there is always someone out there with a trigger happy finger. See where I'm going?"

_Your eyes, Es_.

"Hmm, well we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

I could tell that Miracle was still uncertain but I urged him on towards the town. As the town came into view I jumped off Miracle and ran up to the town. On the corner of the block there was an antique looking shop with a sign that said simply 'GUNS'. This was going to be a piece of cake! I walked into the shop like I owned it.

"Can I help you miss?" the middle-aged man asked me.

"Yeah, I want to, um, get my boyfriend a birthday gift. He's really into handguns and pistols and the likes," I said, with a twinge of bitterness uttering 'boyfriend'. "I want a really nice one."

"Ah, this one is very nice. An N-frame Smith & Wesson revolver, the model 27. It's really nice…" the man continued.

"It's beautiful. I'll take it and a box of ammunition," I handed him Bella's black credit card—which I had pick-pocketed from her this morning. I couldn't help myself. I analyzed her signature on the back of the card; it wouldn't be that hard to forge. "Er, he does my bills for me, is there anyway you can make this look like it came from somewhere else? I don't want him to see how much I've paid for this, and then he'll get all upset for me spending so much on him, you know?"

"Understand completely miss, many people want that, no problem."

I signed for witless Bella and left the shop. I walked back to Miracle and set out to feed. I caught his scent, musky, old… then I heard that fateful sound. A shot in the distance; this man was a hunter! He was hunting in _my_ forest, _my_ animals! I heard the trees moan in the loss of that being, I kicked Miracle into the fastest gallop he could manage.

Rage boiled in me as we raced past the trees. The clouds darkened and thunder rumbled from deep within them. We skidded to a stop in front of the hunter; I pulled my gun out and aimed at his head.

"You picked the wrong forest, buddy," I growled. Terror swam behind his eyes.

I pulled the trigger and the eyes swam no longer.

I zipped off Miracle and snatched the bullet as it exited the man's head. I caught him as he slumped over and began to feed. Miracle cam over and dined with me and soon we demolished the man.

"We'll just leave him; some animal will come and finish him off…" I murmured, "I wonder what he was shooting anyway."

I looked around and not too far away lay the body of a magnificent mountain lion. The once proud hunter lay motionless; its body draped across the rocks where it had drawn its last breaths. Misery welled inside of me and the storm clouds finally spilled over as fat tear-like raindrops fell on the once proud head.

I saw movement to my right and looked up. There, softly mewing, huddled a baby lion. That bastard hunter had killed one lion and doomed another! Not on my watch that dick-weed wouldn't. Thunder rumbled again, causing the cub to cower back behind the underbrush.

"Come on little baby, I'm not going to hurt you." My connection with nature and the Earth allowed me to be accepted by these magnificent creatures, yet I fear that with this path I have chosen, humans and vampires would not be at ease with me.

_Esmerelda, are you sure you know what you're doing? What are you going to do with it—_

"Him," I said picking up the cub and cuddling him close.

_But seriously what are you going to do with him?_

"I'll raise him, and once he's big enough, I'll let him go. To be free."

_Ok then, where are you going to keep him? In a house full of vampires, he's bound to become a snack._

"My dear Miracle, he won't be staying _in_ the house. He'll be in your barn! And you will protect him," I said mounting up with the cub in my arms, "if anything happens to my baby, so help me God, there is no vampire strong enough to keep me from ripping the one responsible into a million pieces."

_All right. You have a deal._

"Oh, thanks Miracle! You're such a wonderful pony! We'll keep Godric in your stall ok?"

_You have no mercy, do you?_

"No mercy," I laughed as we rode back the to Cullen house.

After Godric was settled in the barn, I went inside the house throwing Bella's card on the table as I made my way to the kitchen crossing my fingers there would be _something_ for my baby. 2% milk would do I guess, I pulled it out and set it on the table.

"Now I just have to find something to put it in," I mumbled. There had to be some sort of bottle like thing here.

"What are you looking for? And what are you doing with… milk?" Emmet asked.

"Secret mission, don't you know, I'm CIA," I joked, of all the Cullens, I hated Emmet the least.

"No, seriously, try me."

"No other questions though, ok?" I'd take a chance with him.

"Ok, ok, shoot."

"Some sort of bottle-like thing…"

He seemed about to ask a question, but then remembered the agreement and thought better of it. He went to the recycling bin and pulled out the water bottle (the only one) and handed it to me.

"Thanks," I poured some milk into the bottle and twisted the cap back on.

I put the milk back and ran out the door; it was still raining, just slightly, the perfect amount.

"Here you go baby," I said poking a hole in the cap so it made a better bottle for him. I sat down and pulled straw onto my lap, then I nestled the kitten in my lap.

I leaned my head back against the wall. I fell into an almost sleep as Godric purred away in my lap.


	21. Decisions and Penguins?

**Vampire Knights**

Chapter 20: Decisions and Penguins!?

Jitterbug's PoV

The worry was killing me.

The attacks were still happening all over the world; although humans and their cities appeared to be the only targets, I couldn't help but worry for Lily and the rest of us. Whatever was behind this was obviously powerful, to wreak such devastation in such a short time span. It was obviously something supernatural, as no human was strong enough to commit such monstrosities—wouldn't it be logical to believe it was strong enough to harm vampires as well?

But what could I do? Despite Carlisle's friends flocking from the corners of the globe—the Amazon, Egypt, Ireland, Denali, and England, among others—we had no new leads concerning this disconcerting matter. I was surprised the Volturi hadn't become involved already. But whoever it was had been careful to stay well away from Italy, and it's not like the humans were going to suspect it was all one person. The theories were currently centered on some sort of gang-mafia-ninja-spy-whatever-the-hell-they-came-up-with organization. Violence devastating, motives unclear… Come to think of it, we didn't know much more than the humans.

I shook my head in frustration. _I'm going for a run. Anyone coming?_

_I'm in, _Miracle answered, eager to escape the headache called Godric. The thing would be fine by itself for a couple hours… Right? I decided we'd close the barn door. It was too small to escape and accidentally kill itself.

_Me too. Where are we going?_

_Doesn't matter. _

'_Kay. _

The three of us stepped out into the rain; Miracle carefully closed and latched the barn door, his thoughts obviously in tandem with mine. Esmerelda would have our hides if it escaped, and though I knew I could outrun her if it was really necessary, I rather liked being on speaking terms with the girls. It wouldn't do to have one of Lily's best friends mad at me.

Moonie snorted up at the sky, prancing a few steps before shifting into an enthusiastic canter. The moisture in the air swirled around the three of us as we set off into the woods.

_I'll race you guys to the clearing, _challenged Miracle; his dark amber eyes twinkled in amusement and exhilaration at being free—however temporarily—from the barn.

_You're on. _The answer was instant and perfectly synchronized. The three of us took off, galloping through the underbrush at breakneck speed. I pushed my legs faster, reveling in the air whipping past and the satisfactory blur of green that rushed by. This was what I needed—an escape.

I didn't mind when Miracle won; he always did, unless Moon and I teamed up and fought dirty with him. And the light, teasing banter that inevitably followed his victory provided a suitable distraction from the worry gnawing in my belly.

_I won!_

_No duh. _

_Where does he even get the energy?_

_He's psycho. Only explanation. _

_Jealous?_

_Only of people who don't have to deal with you. _

_I was right. You are jealous. Why else would you try so hard to blow it off? _

_You know, Miracle, not everyone has to work so hard at coming up with suitable comebacks. _

_Touché. _

But perfection—shallow, superficial, easy perfection—never lasts. The conversation would invariably find a way back to more serious topics. But maybe…

Maybe I couldn't do anything about the attacks; we had no ideas concerning the who, when, where, or why of the situation. But there were things we did know, things that were inside of our control. Maybe now was the time to inform the girls of our theory concerning Scorpius and Morrigan, if only to alleviate the frantic swirl of thoughts that were always present in my mind. If I felt like I was doing _something_, maybe the tension would ease.

_I think we should tell the girls we think Morrigan is controlling Scorpius. _

They both exhaled sharply; I could feel the relief in the tenor of their thoughts. Apparently, I wasn't the only one who was anxious. We weren't used to feeling like we weren't useful. At Ride On, no matter how miserable the conditions may have been, we always knew what we were doing. We were helping people. We let them ride us, giving them the mobility they lacked and challenging them to stretch the boundaries nature had placed on them. Healers, helpers, friends, wings… And now we were nothing. Now we fed and talked and rolled in the dirt all day. Pathetic.

_Good idea—I'm dead bored. _

_Not that it will help anything, but still…_

I struck out for the Cullens', not waiting for more response than that. Moonie and Miracle pulled up in my peripheral vision, our hooves beating out an even pace, a team rather than competitors.

We had a purpose. We knew what we were doing. Maybe we could help people.

What else could we ask for?

****

Lily's PoV

"Do you hear that?"

I glanced up at Esmerelda, annoyed that she had interrupted me; something that wouldn't usually bother me, unless the conversation was of the utmost importance, which this one was. It was with Daniel. Need I say more?

"No. I was talking."

"The trees are excited. It's not often that they see… this thing. I'm not sure what it is. But it's headed this way."

"Fine, I'll go check," I sighed. A quick jump and a shift into hawk form later, I was being carried by the breeze in the direction Esmerelda indicated. As I dove for the flash of hair racing through the trees, I shifted again to the less-conspicuous form of a swallow. And then I just about fell out of the sky as I recognized what was attached to the long, blonde hair I'd seen from above.

But I was saved by my vampire brain, which was able to get over the shock almost instantly. My hawk form carried me back to Esmerelda more rapidly than I'd flown out as I pushed my wings as fast as they'd go.

"It's Brie." The words exploded from my mouth the second it was able to form words; I tumbled out of the sky and into myself, barely taking time to notice that Esmerelda had also gathered the disgruntled-looking Jill and Jesse.

"It's _Brie_?" Jill shrieked. "Oh my god, this is bad. We're in so much trouble! We stole the horses and she found out even though you said she wouldn't and scaring her off didn't work and now she's found us and she'll try to make us give them back but we can't because they're vampires and we're vampires and oh my god this is bad bad bad bad—"

"Jill!" Esmerelda cut into Jill's word vomit, sparing us all from the next fifty-or-so repetitions of 'bad'. "It can't be Brie. The forest wouldn't be excited about her; she's only human."

I scowled at her. "I know what I saw, Es. It was definitely Brie, and she was riding Fizz. Her eyes were still blue, so they're not vampires, but Fizz shouldn't have been able to move that fast. She'll be here any second."

"Any second!"

I blinked, startled, as the scene in front of me shifted instantly. Jill moved on to unfreeze Esmerelda, and then Jesse and Dan, who had been silently watching as the drama unfurled. I knew what had happened, of course; Jill had stopped time and then moved to unfreeze me. Although I understood that she hadn't really moved too fast for me to see, merely when time was stopped, it didn't stop the unease I felt with the sudden halt of activity. The perfect silence was unnerving.

"Jill," I groaned. "Could you at least warn us? You're giving me a headache."

She stuck her tongue out at me. "You can't get headaches. Stop whining. Besides, am I the only one who's not ready to see Brie again? I say we run for it, and I'll unfreeze things when we're in the next state."

"No, we can't do that," Esmerelda interjected. "If it really is Brie, something weird is going on. I've never felt the forest so…surprised, with mild excitement and interest. It's a very odd sensation and I want to meet what's causing it."

"And really," I added, "If she found us here, who's to say she won't find us again?"

"Who's Brie?" asked Jesse, as he moved to take Jill's hand. The tension visibly drained from her as he rubbed soothing circles with his thumb.

Hmmm, this was a new development. Note to self: get details later.

"The instructor at Ride On, where we used to work."

"It's also where we stole the ponies from, which is why she's going to KILL US! Are you sure we can't just run away?"

"I told you, I want to see her. And since I won't go with you and you won't leave me behind, there's really no point in arguing. Now are you going to unfreeze things or not?"

Jill measured our expressions for a few seconds, sighed at the realization that Es was serious, and then allowed time to restart. The forest sounds resumed, the breeze fluttered through my hair, and the steady rhythm of cantering hooves became audible.

Moments later, Brie and Fizz burst through the fringe of trees on the right.

"Told you it was Brie," I muttered, unable to resist rubbing it in.

She stared at the three of us for a long moment, assessing the changes in our appearance and demeanor. "Well Freaks, I'm glad we found you. The scent was a little stale, but we managed. You've got some explaining to do." The last sentence was odd, because it was a statement of fact, rather than a threat. Not what I would have expected, given the situation.

"We? Who else did you bring?" Jill's voice rose in pitch as a slight edge of panic entered her tone, although it was unlikely Brie noticed.

"Just us, me and Fessina." I started a little at the use of 'Fessina', Fizz's proper show name. Since when did Brie call her that?

"Fessina?" Esmerelda asked, her thoughts in tandem with mine.

Brie pressed her lips together, obviously considering something, before replying. "I guess we have some explaining to do, too."

I blinked purposefully to cover my shock, noting similar reactions from Jill and Esmerelda.

"Explaining… Meaning you're going to explain how you could _smell_ us, which would clearly make you more than human?"

She smirked. "Yep. You first though, Freaks, because mine's crazier."

"I find that hard to believe," Jill mumbled, clearly uncomfortable with the situation. And really, who could blame her? I was a little freaked out, myself.

Esmerelda shrugged, ignoring Jill. "What do you want to know? Lily already told you that we're vampires."

Brie rolled her eyes. "Well that obviously hasn't been the case forever. I think you'd better tell me how it happened, why you stole my horses, and why you wrecked my car."

If I could've blushed, I would have. "Um, yeah, sorry about that. I just wanted to scare you off, so you wouldn't call the cops on us."

She shook her head. "You know, if you had just left, everyone would have assumed you stole the horses. They would've put out calls to the police, and you would've had to lay low for a while, but you'd be unrecognizable after a few years, with the whole 'not aging' thing and all. You didn't _have_ to destroy my car."

Jill jumped to my defense. "Yeah, well, you try thinking when you're panicking. It's not easy."

"And anyway," Esmerelda cut in, avoiding the fight, "it doesn't really matter anymore. It doesn't matter that we stole the horses, especially since Jitterbug and Moonie were vampires before the three of us were. Bug changed Moon, who changed Lily and Jill, who changed me. And then I turned Miracle, so if you want to fault us for something, I think that's the only one you've got."

"Who changed Bug?"

"We didn't know, at first," I answered her, saving Es from Brie's scrutiny. "But when we got her, we learned that it was Bella. She tried to eat him, thought it was gross, and ran away."

"And that," Jill pointed out, "is all you get. We answered your questions. Now you'd better explain how and why you found us, and what you _are_."

"And why you call Fizz Fessina," I added, out of curiosity.

"I call Fizz Fessina because that's her name. Fizz was just a cover. We found you by tracking your scent. We tracked you because I wanted to talk to you."

We waited, looking at her expectantly.

She sighed in response. "Don't laugh, okay? I'll tell you what we are, but you can't laugh because I swear it's true."

"Deal," we answered in unison.

"Fessina and I are half-sisters." My mouth fell open in shock. Judging from how the expression looked on Jill and Es, I probably looked like a dying fish.

"I'm half human, she's half horse, and we're both half penguin. And remember, you promised not to laugh."

We stared. There was nothing else to do. What else _could_ you do, when your riding instructor tells you she's half penguin?

"Half… penguin?" The voice sounded strangled. I belatedly realized that it was mine.

"Yeah. On my mother's side. Wanna see?"

"Sure," Esmerelda answered, her voice nearly inaudible, eyes still wide as dinner plates.

And then, right before my perfectly accurate vampire eyes, Brie and Fizz both morphed into penguins.

They were black with a white belly and a little bit of yellow around where ears should have been. Did penguins have ears? I didn't see any. If not, how do they hear? Do they need to hear? I was pretty sure that they make noise. What would it be like, living without sound? Pretty weird, I guessed. But wouldn't that make staying away from predators hard? Maybe they're like those blind worms that lived in the dark for so long that they stopped having eyes; would their ears fall off from lack of use?

Focus, Lily.

"So what does that make you?" Dan whispered to me.

My brow furrowed in confusion. "I'm still a vampire…"

He shrugged. "Yeah, but you turn into stuff too. Are you half human, half hawk, half sparrow, and half mountain lion?"

"That's four halves."

"You know what I mean. My point is, why are you so freaked out? You could turn into a penguin if you wanted to."

Oh my god, I could.

Brie (or the one I thought was her) let out a high pitched _chirrrrrrup_ noise, calling our attention back to her.

Jill laughed. "I didn't know penguins made noises. Do it again!"

She glared. (Could penguins glare? It certainly looked like one. At any rate, it let off a distinct air of annoyance. But what use would penguins ever have for glaring?)

When we obviously didn't get the message, both… sisters, I guess, morphed back into a person and a horse, respectively. "You're not part penguin, Lily. I would have sensed it."

"No, but we have super cool vampy powerz. I can shapeshift, Jill can freeze time, and Esmerelda can… talk to trees, I guess. I'm not sure how to explain that one."

"But this is really cool!" Jill interrupted excitedly. "You're like a… were-penguin. So you can't get mad at us for anything, because who'd take a were-penguin seriously? This is great!" She grinned happily, twirling in circles and singing: "We're off the hook, we're off the hook!"

"I am _not_ a were-penguin," Brie protested. "We're Official Members of the Society for Partial-Penguin-Sisters United in the Mystical Arts."

"You look like a were-penguin to me," I shot back, grinning at the improbability of it all.

"No! We're Official Members of—"

"Were-penguin!" Esmerelda made a face and dashed off, sprinting to keep ahead of an outraged Fizz.


End file.
